Seven Shades Of Purple
by RySenkari
Summary: In celebration of Caroluna Week, this is an anthology of seven stories about Luna Loud and Carol Pingrey as a couple. Experience the lyrical love between a hard rockin' guitar hero and a gorgeous blonde selfie queen, with tales that take the couple to the highest of highs, the lowest of lows, and everywhere in between.
1. Photograph

(Author's Note: _Seven Shades Of Purple _is being written as part of **Caroluna Week**, inspired by the _Loud House _fan/writer **JamesSunderlandsPillow**! This story, and all the other stories featured in this work, are part of an anthology, which means that they each take place in their own separate continuity and aren't connected to any of the other stories contained within, or any other _Loud House _story I've previously written. Thanks for reading!)

O-O-O

**Day 1 – A Selfie Together **("Photograph")

_Oh, look what you've done to this rock 'n' roll clown  
Oh oh, look what you've done_

-"Photograph" (1983) by Def Leppard

O-O-O

It was a sunny spring day outside Royal Woods High School, and two friends sat on a wooden bench, staring at the phone belonging to one of them.

Over the past few months, the two girls had become more than friends. Luna Loud and Carol Pingrey seemed like the most unlikely of couples at first. One of them was a hard rockin' punk sophomore with a brown pixie cut and a tendency to throw herself into mosh pits, and the other was a sweet but preppy blonde senior with rich parents and a love of all things trendy and fashionable. But despite their differences, the two had found many things they had in common: a love of music (even if their favorite instruments and genres differed), surprising shared tastes in fashion (particularly a favorite color), and a mutual attraction to one another, both physically and emotionally.

As Carol showed off her phone to Luna, scrolling through the numerous selfies she'd taken over the past few days, the young rocker gazed at them with curiosity and fascination, admiring the smile her girlfriend sported in the pictures. It was a smile that could have lit up any room the two were in together, and a smile Luna couldn't stop staring at on the high definition screen.

"And here's the one I took when I visited The Mosh Pit," said Carol, referring to the punk fashion store at the local mall. "Got a lot of stares when I went in there."

"Don't think anyone expected to see the most popular girl in school at the place where all the mohawk kids hang out," said Luna with amusement, pointing out the shocked looking girl in the background of one of Carol's pictures. "She looks like she's seen a celebrity."

"Oh, shut up, I'm not _that _famous," said Carol. "Besides, it's not like I went in there to buy anything, I was just curious."

"You bought that sweet purple collar," Luna replied, pointing to the shiny purple leather band adorning Carol's neck. "Looks great on you by the way."

Carol giggled and scrolled to the next snapshot. This one showed her purchasing ice cream, holding her cone in one hand and her phone in the other.

"Hashtag delicious," said Carol, before scrolling to the next picture. The two girls continued to view Carol's selfies as she showed herself hanging out with Leni at the mall, visiting a statue of the town founder, trying on a new hat, and relaxing on the couch with her earbuds on. Each of the pictures had between 130 and 250 likes, and Carol looked happy and beautiful in all of them.

"And here's my latest," said Carol, scrolling to a picture of her posing in a brand new bikini. It was dark purple, and showed off a surprising amount of skin, but not quite enough to be considered truly revealing. It had the most likes of all, at 271, despite being the newest picture Carol had posted. Luna immediately began to blush upon seeing it, though it had already shown up in her feed and she had been the third person to like it, after Lori and a male student from a school across town.

"Lookin' pretty sexy in that one, bra," said Luna, managing a confident smirk even as her reddened face telegraphed just how stunning Carol looked in her latest selfie.

"Sorry you didn't see me in this until I posted it," Carol said, noticing Luna's blush and smiling warmly. "Just thought I'd try it on before stepping outside in it for the first time."

"It's cool, nice to have a preview for when summer gets here," said Luna, sweetly reassuring Carol as the blush began to fade from her cheeks. "And I can see why it has so many likes."

"Well, only one of those likes is really important," said Carol, before leaning in and smooching Luna on the cheek. Almost instantly, the blush returned to the brunette's face, and Carol began to blush as well upon realizing just how much Luna liked seeing her in such a skimpy outfit. For a moment, the two girls sat there blushing and staring at each other with nothing to say, but eventually Carol managed to collect herself enough to change the subject. "Anyway, I've noticed that you don't ever post any selfies on your page... I mean, there's plenty of pictures of you and the band, or you and your family, but you don't ever post selfies! What gives?"

Luna blinked, and Carol, thinking she'd overstepped, tried to correct herself.

"I mean, if you're not comfortable posting selfies, it's fine, but-"

"It's not that," said Luna, placing a reassuring hand on Carol's shoulder. "It's just... I dunno, just not something I'm really into. I like taking pictures of cool stuff and cool people."

"Luna, you are the coolest person I know," said Carol sweetly. "You'd look awesome in a selfie! You should take some selfies right now!"

"Right now?"

"...if you're comfortable!"

Luna started blushing again. It wasn't that she was uncomfortable with posting selfies, she'd already just told Carol she wasn't. But of all the things she could be taking pictures of, she never imagined herself being one of them. If she _did _take pictures of herself, she wanted to have her bandmates with her, or her friends, or her siblings... the idea of taking a selfie never really occurred to her, even though she knew pretty much everyone did it. Her sister Lori did it all the time. Leni did it even more. Luan took funny ones, Lynn took dramatic ones, Lincoln took "epic" ones, or at least that's what he called them... but Luna didn't take them, and she didn't have a good answer for Carol as to why.

But if Carol wanted to see her take selfies...

"Okay, I mean, I could take some," said Luna, taking out her own phone and holding it up. Her arm shook nervously, and Carol immediately picked up on it, reaching up to gently pull her girlfriend's arm back down.

"It doesn't have to be right this second," Carol said. "I mean, if you want to take them while you're out and about today, that'd be great!"

Luna nodded and put her phone back down.

"Sure, I'll take a few at the places I go today. And I'll make sure to post them on FaceSpace."

"Are you sure you're comfortable doing it, though? I don't want to push you..."

"Relax, bra," said Luna, placing a hand on Carol's. "I'm sure this'll be fun!"

"And I'm sure you'll get lots of likes!"

Luna smiled and squeezed Carol's hand, then leaned up and gave her a smooch on the cheek like the one Carol had given her a few minutes ago.

"It's like you said, only one of those likes is really important."

Luna then parted from Carol just as the school bell rang for the two girls to head back in for their last few hours of classes. Carol put her phone away, hoping she hadn't been too pushy in asking Luna to take those selfies later.

_I just hope she gets as many likes as mine do..._

O-O-O

That night, Carol was relaxing in her bed, scrolling through more FaceSpace pictures on her phone. She couldn't stop thinking about Luna, but had resisted the urge to check her girlfriend's profile, wanting to give her a chance to post something before taking a look. It was just past eight, and with the sky having turned dark an hour before, she felt it was time to see just what Luna had posted. She felt a quick rush of excitement as she pulled up Luna's page, which was listed under lunaswagger.

"Let's see what we have here..." Carol mused to herself, scrolling to the latest posts on Luna's page. Sure enough, there were more than a dozen new pictures, taken in places all over Royal Woods. "All right, Luna!"

Several of the pictures showed Luna at practice with her band, holding her guitar or standing with one of her bandmates. Two showed her with Sam, who Luna was still quite close with despite the fact that she'd begun dating Carol a few months before. One showed Luna thinking about something, and Carol read over the text of the post to find out what.

_ lunaswagger: Thinkin' up a brand new song dedicated to a certain inspiring special someone... #songwritingishard #mymuse #homecomingqueen_

Carol audibly sighed, unable to wipe the smile from her face as she thought about Luna writing a song for her. She also loved to see the confident, happy expression on Luna's face as she held her guitar and spent time with her band.

_She looks so beautiful... _thought Carol, zooming in on the pictures to see the freckles on her girlfriend's face and the effect of the garage lighting on Luna's short brown hair. _I know what she says about me, but she's wrong. She's the prettiest girl in school and I know I'm not the only one who thinks so. I'm proud of how I look and it takes a lot of work to look this way, but it's effortless for her. Her eyes, her smile... I'd kill for those freckles. God, I would look so much sexier with freckles._

Carol exhaled, trying to calm herself down before she started reaching down the front of her skirt. She began scrolling to the next pictures in the series, showing Luna relaxing on a park bench, hanging out in front of a brick wall with a Mick Swagger poster on it, standing next to a used car...

_ lunaswagger: Here's to hoping I save up enough money from concerts to afford this baby next year. No offense, dad, but I can't cruise around in Vanzilla if I'm gonna be a rock star, and I can't bum rides from Chunk all the time either. #rockmobile #07malibu #money #fourstardaydream_

"Hey, I'd give you rides..." said Carol, playfully taking offense to Luna's post but also knowing how much Luna would probably prefer having her own car. "I know you won't let me buy it for you, but maybe I could pitch in a bit."

Carol scrolled to the last picture that Luna posted, showing off a cute outfit of her own. It wasn't nearly as revealing as Carol's purple bikini, but was a bit more flashy than what Luna usually wore: a purple leather jacket over a blank tanktop, with figure-hugging blue jeans pockmarked with tears and holes.

_ lunaswagger: Normally I don't wear threads like these, but now that I'm apparently a selfie queen, I thought I might try on something new to mark the occasion. Tight but surprisingly comfortable. Hopefully you-know-who likes them ;) #newclothes #oldsoul #dontworryitsnotrealleather_

Carol _did _like Luna's new clothes, and immediately scrolled down to prove it by clicking "like" on the page. She looked down at the heart, but as she moved her finger down, she noticed the little number next to it.

"...285?!" stammered Carol, her eyes going wide. "But that... that can't be right, that pic was posted like an hour and a half ago! Wait a minute..."

Carol scrolled to the other pictures. First, the one with Luna standing by the car...

"374?"

Then, the one with Luna and Sam standing together...

"527?!"

The one with Luna writing a song...

"606?"

Every single one of Luna's 14 selfies posted that day had at least 300 likes, save for the one she'd most recently posted... and that was on pace for 300 likes in the next ten minutes, having already gone up to 292 by the time Carol looked at it again. One of Luna's pictures, a picture of her sitting against a tree downtown with a wistful look on her face, already had 866 total likes, more than any picture Carol had ever posted on FaceSpace. Carol stared at her phone in disbelief, scrolling up to Luna's follower count.

"Maybe her page is just more popular than mine..."

Luna had 53 less followers than Carol did. Somehow, despite having less followers, Luna's selfies had gotten significantly more likes than Carol's, and in significantly less time. A flood of emotions poured through Carol's mind. She dropped her phone on the bed and began breathing quickly, her mind racing to figure out just how Luna could have gotten so many likes on her pictures that quickly.

_I know I love Luna, but I didn't think everyone loved her THAT much, right? I mean, she did go viral after being on America's Next Hitmaker, but only for like a few days and she didn't get all that many new followers, so it couldn't have been that. Her band's kinda popular, I guess? Locally, maybe? Ugh, Carol, this shouldn't be a big deal, you WANTED Luna to get lots of likes!_

Carol began to feel guilty, hating herself for making such a big deal about this. Was she actually... jealous? Of Luna? Of her own girlfriend?

_What's wrong with me? I thought I was over this whole obsession with having the most likes! I thought I was done with it after I became BFFs with Lori!_

Of course, Carol had never _completely _gotten over her obsession with likes and popularity. Sure, it was less important to her now than it had been before, and she wasn't in quite such fierce competition with her friends anymore, but she still cared, at least on some level. And clearly, she wasn't entirely okay with Luna having more likes than her. She also wasn't okay with not being entirely okay with that.

_I am a horrible person! She's my girlfriend, I love her! I should be happy for her, and I am, but I'm not! WHAT'S WRONG WITH ME?_

Carol reached for her phone. She grasped it and saw how much her hand was shaking, so she pulled it back and left her phone there. She tried not to even look at her phone. She gripped her right wrist tightly in her left hand to keep from reaching for it again.

_Get a GRIP, Carol!_

Carol took several deep, calming breaths, trying to remember all the anti-anxiety techniques she'd learned over the years. She counted to five, she tried to clear her mind, she tried to think of happy things. She tried to think about Luna, but not in the context of how many likes she had.

_Luna... God, those freckles...717 likes!_

She grabbed her phone, opened the page, looked at the pic, looked at the like counter.

"726 likes!"

Carol squeezed her phone tightly, and her face contorted into a furious expression for a brief moment before she realized what she was doing.

_Luna is my girlfriend. I love her. I'm happy for her._

Carol exhaled. She thought about the moment she and Luna had fallen in love, playing music together in her bedroom. She thought about the first date she and Luna had shared together. She thought about their first trip to a concert together, about their first kiss...

_I don't care how many likes she gets. I don't care if she's more popular than me. _

Carol put the phone down again, took a deep breath, and smiled.

_I love her._

Carol looked at Luna's latest picture.

"341 likes and counting."

She clicked the heart icon.

"Now it's 342."

Carol Pingrey was okay.

But still... she was curious. She wondered if Luna knew? She wondered if Luna cared? She wondered what Luna thought about having more likes than her?

_No... that's stupid. I can't CONFRONT Luna about having more likes than me._

Carol took another deep breath and looked at the picture again. 347 likes now.

_But I can at least ask her about it..._

O-O-O

The next day at school, Carol found Luna. It was a few minutes before their first classes, but the two girls still had enough time to converse about the subject at hand, and both of them had selfies on their mind.

"Hey bra, I saw you liked some of my selfies," said Luna, her lips curving into a playfully menacing smirk. "But you didn't like all of them..."

"Uh..."

"Just messin' with ya, I'm just glad you saw 'em. It was really fun takin' 'em, I can see why you like to take so many! Maybe I'll take some more today, just don't expect me to take as many as you do."

"Hey, it's not for everyone, don't think you have to take selfies every day just to make me happy," replied Carol.

Carol thought briefly about not even broaching the subject of likes with Luna, but curiosity got the better of her, and she found herself asking the question before she could even have a second thought about it.

"Hey, uh... why do you have so many likes, anyway?" asked Carol. "Uh, uhhmm, not that I'm saying you shouldn't have a bunch of likes! I mean, I loved your pictures, it's great! But... you have a lot, and-"

"Oh wow, really?" asked Luna, scrolling down on one of her pictures to see how many likes she had. "Wow, 690? That's a lot, I didn't know it'd be that many..."

"Yeah... that's um... that's more than mine usually get," said Carol, blushing a bit but also looking slightly guilty for pointing it out, and hoping that Luna wouldn't pick up a slight hint of jealousy from her expression. "A lot more actually."

"Well, I did set it to notify all your friends too," said Luna, scrolling down past the like bar. Carol could see that Luna had set the notifications on the picture to mention Carol Pingrey's profile, which also had the effect of alerting a good portion of her followers to the post. "See?"

Carol raised her eyebrows at what Luna was showing her, and realized immediately that she had enabled this function on her own profile, to link her and Luna's pages in such a way that Luna could alert Carol's followers. Carol hadn't actually done that for Luna's page, since Luna posted so many fewer pictures than she did.

_And also because I honestly spaced it_, thought Carol, slapping her forehead with her hand. "Duh, no wonder you got so many likes!"

"Yeah, it's like all my friends and your friends were liking my posts," said Luna, scrolling further down the page. "Check out the comments on this one."

Luna was showing off the songwriting picture, which now had over 850 total likes. There were numerous comments on the post, most of them containing only a few words, but some of them, from both Carol and Luna's friends, making slightly longer comments...

_ metalknight2002: You two make a killer couple!_

_ itswhitneybetch: Can't wait to hear the song you write about my friend Carol :)_

_ tabbykat: you two are so f*kin cute together_

_ samsharp: I still love you to bits, but you and Carol are so beautiful and I've never seen you happier. You guys should post a selfie together!_

Sam's post made both Luna and Carol blush, and when Carol saw that every single one of Luna's recent selfies had at least one comment referencing how cute the two were as a couple together, she felt another wave of guilt about how she'd reacted to Luna's number of likes, even if it was only a few jealous thoughts for a few minutes.

"Hey," said Luna, noticing the slight look of guilt in Carol's eyes. "Don't feel bad for jellin'."

"I... I...! ...you knew, huh?"

"You're not all that hard to read, you know."

Luna's warm smile told Carol that every little thing was gonna be all right, and she pulled the blonde in closer.

"You read what Sam posted, right?" asked Luna, taking out her phone and holding it up. "Well?"

Carol blushed, nodded, and smiled, all at the same time. She took out her own phone.

"Ready?" asked Carol.

Luna nodded, then leaned in. Carol leaned in and held up her phone next to Luna's.

Their lips met.

O-O-O

_ carolp: Can you believe this is the first couples selfie we've taken? Hopefully it's the first of many! lunaswagger has really soft lips... #couplesselfie #girlfriend #myfirst #mylast #myeverything_

_ lunaswagger: Out here livin' my best life with the this rockin' queen carolp #kiss #girlfriend #alliwant #myfantasy_

_1,472 likes_


	2. Shallow

(Author's Note: _Seven Shades Of Purple _is being written as part of **Caroluna Week**, inspired by the _Loud House _fan/writer **JamesSunderlandsPillow**! This story, and all the other stories featured in this work, are part of an anthology, which means that they each take place in their own separate continuity and aren't connected to any of the other stories contained within, or any other _Loud House _story I've previously written. Thanks for reading!)

O-O-O

**Day 2 – Music **("Shallow")

_I'm off the deep end, watch as I dive in  
I'll never meet the ground  
Crash through the surface, where they can't hurt us  
We're far from the shallow now_

-"Shallow" (2018) by Lady GaGa and Bradley Cooper (from _A Star Is Born (2018)_)

O-O-O

Luna Loud couldn't help but be nervous as she and her band waited to perform at the Royal Woods High School Battle of the Bands. She was used to performing in front of crowds and used to competition, but she wasn't used to playing the kind of music that her band was about to perform.

"Hey," came a voice from behind Luna. Luna turned to see her girlfriend and bandmate Sam standing nearby, giving her a reassuring look. "We're gonna do great. Besides, change is good. We can't play the same kind of music all the time, even if it is awesome."

"Yeah, but I dunno," replied Luna, holding her guitar and peeking out past the curtain toward the crowd that consisted mostly of her fellow teenagers. "Playing a pop song instead of rock 'n' roll feels like selling out, ya know?"

"Nah... besides, even _you _liked _A Star Is Born_," said Sam. "And you loved the song. We'll knock the house down playing 'Shallow' tonight, and nobody'll see it coming! Especially considering who our guest performer is."

Luna and Sam both looked across the stage to see the only person more nervous about that night's performance than Luna was.

"Oh man," said Luna. "I think I better go check on Carol."

Sam leaned over and gave Luna a quick peck on the lips before she walked across the stage to check on their guest.

Carol Pingrey had initially intended to enter the Battle of the Bands as a solo performer, playing a song on her violin. She certainly hadn't expected to be singing, and had expected even less to be singing with Luna Loud and the most hard rockin' band in the entire school. A month ago, Carol barely even knew Luna. She only saw her when she visited the Loud house to hang out with Lori. But one day, everything changed. Carol had been waiting for Lori to finish up a video chat session with Bobby when she'd heard some very loud music coming from downstairs. Venturing into the living room, she'd caught Luna, Sam, and the rest of their band working on a new song, and out of pure curiosity, had sat on the stairs to watch them until they were finished playing. One thing led to another, and now Carol was standing on stage, getting ready to perform at the Battle of the Bands with them.

"Hey, is everything okay?" asked Luna, as Carol nervously held her violin close to her body. "I know you've never sung in front of a crowd before..."

"I have, once," said Carol. "In the school talent show when I was seven. I... guess it was okay, but it's been a decade since then!"

"You'll do great," said Luna, giving her an encouraging smile. "I mean, you sang for us before and I thought you were awesome. The whole band did."

"I know, but that was just for you guys, and that wasn't even this song! We haven't even practiced this song!"

Carol's reminder that Luna and the band hadn't even gotten the time to properly practice their performance made her a bit nervous again, but she knew she had to be strong for Carol, and swallowed her fear in a quiet gulp.

"We've all heard it tons of times on the radio, and you told me you saw the movie, what, 13 times?"

"Fourteen," said Carol, blushing. "I watched it yesterday to get ready."

"And isn't the song great? Lady GaGa is amazing."

"I'm not Lady GaGa!" Carol replied, her face contorted in fear and her forehead ready to break out in a profuse sweat. "I can barely hold my violin steady, how can I hold a steady note?"

Luna walked around behind Carol and gently placed her hands on the girl's shoulders. Carol jerked up at first, slightly shocked that Luna had been so quick to touch her like that, but began to calm down as Luna's hands rubbed the nervousness out of her.

_She has soft shoulders... _thought Luna as her hands tenderly kneaded Carol's bare skin above her strapless purple sequined dress. _I hope this feels as nice for her as it does for me..._

_Oh... that feels good... _thought Carol, her cares briefly disappearing under Luna's soft touch. _I imagine she has lots of practice with her girlfriend Sam... oh no, I hope Sam's not getting jealous of me!_

Carol looked over quickly at Sam, who just smiled and gave the two girls a friendly thumbs up.

"You guys ready to go? We're on in like thirty seconds!" Sam shouted over at them. Carol sighed nervously, while Luna took her hands on Carol's shoulders and patted her on the back.

"You'll do great, bra," said Luna, picking her own guitar back up and walking toward the front of the stage. "And if you don't, don't worry. Everybody's bombed at least one set before."

_But I'm Carol Pingrey, I don't...! _Carol could see everyone else taking their spots on stage, and quickly rushed up to the microphone just as the curtain lifted. She was still shaking slightly, and Luna gave her one last smile to calm her down.

"Thanks for doing this, by the way," said Luna with a grateful smile.

Carol nodded, but still looked a bit nervous as the MC announced the band's set. Luna, standing at the microphone next to Carol, began to quietly play her own guitar, while her bandmates readied their own instruments.

"_Tell me somethin', girl..._" Luna began to sing, with a quiet confidence as she invoked Bradley Cooper's mournful lyrics. _"Are you happy in this modern world?_"

Luna looked over to Carol, giving her a smile before singing the next line.

"_Or do you need more? Is there somethin' else you're searchin' for?_"

Carol looked down at the floor for a moment, her fingers trembling. She looked over at Luna and listened, as Luna continued to sing with a passion that reflected her love of music and her ability to feel the words and the melody of any song she performed.

"_I'm falling... in all the good times I find myself longing... for change. And in the bad times, I fear myself..._"

Luna continued to softly play her guitar, looking over at Carol again. Carol's fingers were no longer trembling, but there was a cold feeling in her stomach that radiated down her legs and into her feet. She took a quiet but deep breath, waiting for her cue to sing. She focused every bit of energy she had into mentally calming herself, hoping that she wouldn't completely embarrass herself, or worse, ruin Luna and her band's performance. She looked at Luna one last time, and saw in her eyes the confidence she wished she had, and gained in an instant the inspiration she needed.

"_Tell me something, boy... aren't you tired tryin' to fill that void?_" Carol's voice was shaky at first, but corrected itself after a couple of notes, perfectly in tune and perfectly carrying every note through. Carol was right, she wasn't Lady GaGa, but her voice was stronger than even she expected it to be, and came in slightly deeper than her normal speaking voice, producing a sound that most of the students in the crowd and everyone sharing the stage with her had never heard from her before. Most surprised of all was Luna, who continued to play her guitar but began focusing almost all of her attention on Carol as the girl began to play her violin while continuing to sing in perfect tune. "_Or do you need more? Ain't it hard keepin' it so hardcore?_"

Carol was gaining confidence with every note she sang, though she kept her eyes mostly closed, trying to keep the crowd out of her mind as much as possible. Luna was becoming increasingly transfixed, listening to the beautiful music coming out of her new friend's mouth and watching as the beautiful blonde continued to perform.

"_I'm falling... in all the good times I find myself longing... for change._" Carol's voice continued through the song without wavering, building in volume, building in poise. "_And in the bad times, I fear myself..._"

Carol took a single step forward, opening her eyes. Her confidence at its peak, she even managed a smile as she launched into the chorus.

"_I'm off the deep end, watch as I dive in, I'll never meet the ground!_"

Luna's jaw dropped. Carol's voice was powerful, assertive, passionate, beautiful. The girl who two minutes ago had been nervous just to step on stage was awakening to her true voice, and was transforming before Luna's eyes and before the eyes of every single person in the audience, many of whom had the same shocked expressions. Carol Pingrey, the preppy selfie queen, who'd never sung a single note in public the entire time she'd been in high school, had this kind of a voice? Meanwhile, Lori, who was in the front row, let out a cheer, raising her fist into the air. Like Luna, she'd never heard Carol sing anything like this, but unlike Luna, her joy was overtaking her surprise, and she was ready to jump up and cheer. Meanwhile, the rest of the band was stepping up their game as well, especially Sam, who was also quite excited to see how talented Carol was.

"_Crash through the surface, where they can't hurt us, we're far from the shallow now..._"

Luna was falling, diving, and crashing, but in a way she couldn't have possibly imagined.

_Oh my god... _thought Luna, her heart beating twice as fast as it was before Carol started singing. _She's the most beautiful girl I've ever seen._

Luna was so overwhelmed by the sudden rush of emotions flooding her mind that she missed her cue to come back in by a couple of seconds, leaving Carol to sing the first few notes of the next chorus alone. She composed herself and joined Carol in the harmony, and Carol looked at Luna as the two of them sang together for the first time, a beaming smile on her face to stand in contrast to the look of nervousness and shock on Luna's.

"_In the sha-ha-shallow... in the sha-la-la-la-la-low... In the sha-ha-shallow... we're far from the shallow now._"

Luna was able to finally give Carol a smile, but inside her heart and inside her mind, a storm was raging. She looked back at Sam, who was still jamming out with an excited smile on her face, then she looked back at Carol, whose voice was starting to rise to a crescendo as she belted out the loud notes of the bridge that would lead back to the chorus. As Carol fully gave herself to the music, her nervousness having turned into adrenaline which enabled her to produce notes she never imagined she could, still not quite up to the standard of a pop star but definitely the best notes anyone in that auditorium had heard all night, people in the crowd began to stand up: first Lori, then some of Carol's close friends, then her parents, then others. With every note, Carol's confidence grew stronger, and Luna's heart grew fonder, despite the fact that she was already in a relationship with Sam, who played obliviously just a few feet away. Every note Carol sang made Luna fall for her even more.

_What's wrong with you, Luna? You can't be in love with Carol Pingrey! You're in love with Sam! But Carol is so beautiful... her voice... her eyes... her hair... she's... she's..._

"_I'm off the deep end, watch as I dive in, I'll never leave the ground!_" Carol sang with passion and emotion, as the entire auditorium stood and cheered and clapped, and as Luna silently fell hopelessly and inescapably in love, her soul dividing itself in twain as every other person in the auditorium was lifted into ecstatic delirium by Carol's incredible performance. "_Crash through the surface, where they can't hurt us, we're far from the shallow now!_"

_The show must go on, _thought Luna, determined not to miss her cue a second time. She looked into Carol's eyes and smiled, surrendering, at least for these last few moments, to her new feelings, and allowing them to fuel the passion in her own voice.

"_In the sha-ha-shallow... in the sha-la-la-la-la-low... In the sha-ha-shallow... we're far from the shallow now._"

The song ended, and the crowd roared. Carol, who herself couldn't believe she'd done that well, stood at the front of the stage and soaked it all in, closing her eyes and listening to the cheers and feeling more relieved that it was over than happy that she and the band had probably just won the battle.

_That was... actually pretty fun, _thought Carol, letting out a happy sigh. _Guess that practice in the shower paid off!_

Luna and the rest of the band stood next to Carol, soaking in the applause as well. Sam and the others were ecstatic, but Luna was conflicted, and hoped that Sam couldn't see the look on her face, or somehow read her mind.

_Chillax, Luna. It's just one song. You're not really in love with Carol Pingrey, are you?_

At the moment that Luna looked back at Carol, Carol looked back and smiled at her. Luna smiled back.

_...yup. You're in love with Carol Pingrey._

The curtain fell, giving Luna and the rest of the band a few precious minutes of privacy. One by one, Sam, Sully, and Mazzy all walked up to Carol and congratulated her. Sam was particularly enthusiastic, giving Carol a big high five and telling her that her performance was 'badass'. Luna stayed where she was, still trying to come to terms with her feelings.

Then, Carol approached Luna.

"Hey," said Carol, smiling warmly at the conflicted rocker girl. "Thanks. I couldn't have done any of this without you."

"Nah, dude," Luna replied, smiling back at Carol. "You were amazing out there. I... I gotta admit, I didn't expect you to be that good... I mean, I knew you could sing, but that was incredible!"

Carol blushed fiercely at Luna's compliment.

"It was just the adrenaline, I'm not sure I could do that good again..."

"Are you kidding? Oh man, I mean... that was as good as Lady GaGa!"

Carol giggled at Luna's hyperbole.

"Come on Luna, now you're just messing with me."

"I'm _serious_, that was the best singing I've ever heard in person! ...okay, okay, except maybe for Ann Wilson, but still... Carol, you were awesome. You should keep singing. You should join our band!"

Luna quickly placed both hands over her mouth, both surprised and nervous about what she'd just done. She'd just blurted out that she wanted Carol to join the band, without even consulting any of the other members... without even consulting Sam! But before do something else stupid, like awkwardly rescinding Luna's offer, Carol just laughed again and shook her head.

"I appreciate the offer...I mean, I am _super _flattered, and this was a lot of fun, but I can't be in a band, even one as fun and as cool as you guys'. I'm still in like, six different clubs, not to mention the debate team and the golf team... plus, I'm pretty sure Richford doesn't consider rock and roll an extracurricular."

"Nah, it's okay," said Luna, sighing with relief that Carol had turned down her offer, even as she felt a bit of disappointment that she might not get to perform with her again. "I would've needed to ask the rest of the band anyway-"

"Are you kidding?!" asked Sam suddenly, walking over to Luna and Carol. "Carol, if you _ever _change your mind, we would love to have you in the band. You're an amazing singer, almost as good as Luna, and with your awesome violin playing, we could work up some killer prog music."

"I already told Luna I've got a bit too much on my plate right now..." said Carol, though she was now looking guilty about so quickly declining Luna and Sam's offer. "Not that I think you guys aren't worth my time or anything! I mean, I'd love to perform with you again, but not all the time maybe? Ugh, I sound like a total bitch."

Sam was unable to contain her laughter at Carol's nervous declination, and even Luna joined in a bit, before reaching over and taking Carol's hand in hers.

"You are a _lot _of things, but you are _not _a bitch," said Luna. "And even if you can't be in our band, I'd love to sing with you any time."

"Thanks," replied Carol, smiling at Luna before pulling her into a tight hug. "I couldn't have done any of this without you... and I still want to hang out with you guys if that's okay. Maybe tomorrow me and Lori could hang out with you and Sam?"

"A double date?" Sam said with a snicker, making both Carol and Luna blush. "I'm just screwing with you, Lori's dating Bobby and you're dating, uh... that cute preppy guy with the letter jacket?"

"Actually, I'm single," replied Carol, blushing even deeper. "And you and Luna make the _cutest _couple. I wish I had someone as cool as either of you two."

Luna and Sam looked at each other, and Carol gave them both one last hug before walking away.

"I'm gonna go hang out in the hallway with Sully and Mazzy while we wait for the results, you coming with us?" asked Sam, smooching Luna on the cheek.

"Yeah, yeah, sure, I'll be there in a sec," Luna replied, nodding to Sam, but sounding unsure of herself as Sam turned and walked toward their other bandmates. Luna turned away from Sam, and looked back over at Carol, who was meeting with Lori just offstage. Lori was gushing about Carol's performance, and the two were laughing and hugging, with Carol taking a selfie of the both of them together as Luna continued to watch.

Luna looked back over at Sam, and then at Carol again.

_I'm still in love with her, _thought Luna, clutching her hand to her chest. _And I can't stop._

Fantasies of Carol flashed through Luna's mind, simultaneously with the last few months of her relationship with Sam. Luna knew she could never feel exactly the same way about Sam again now that she saw just how amazing Carol was. She just didn't know whether to break it off with Sam now or wait and see if she even had a hint of a chance with Carol. Did Carol even like her back? Did Carol even like girls? All Luna knew was that Carol was single.

_One song can't change everything, can it?_

Finally, Luna pulled her gaze away from Carol and stood up to follow her bandmates back out into the hallway.

One night had changed everything.

One song had changed everything.

_We're far from the shallow now._


	3. Unhearted

(Author's Note: _Seven Shades Of Purple _is being written as part of **Caroluna Week**, inspired by the _Loud House _fan/writer **JamesSunderlandsPillow**! This story, and all the other stories featured in this work, are part of an anthology, which means that they each take place in their own separate continuity and aren't connected to any of the other stories contained within, or any other _Loud House _story I've previously written. Thanks for reading!)

O-O-O

**Day 3 – Angst **("Unhearted")

_You marked your name  
But I can see it's not on me  
So I've shamelessly gone  
And made myself come undone  
Well heavy hangs my head when I'm unhearted _

-"Unhearted" (2008) by Automatic Loveletter

O-O-O

_She's been avoiding me all day... what's going on?_

Luna Loud walked down the hallway of Royal Woods High School, having finished her last class of the day. It had been a normal, uneventful day at school, save for one strange thing: she hadn't seen her girlfriend all day.

Luna knew Carol had gone to school that day. In fact, she'd seen her several times in the hallway, but whenever Luna had called out to her or attempted to walk over, Carol had disappeared into the crowd. Something was wrong, and Luna wanted to know what. She'd texted Carol several times, but Carol didn't reply back. There weren't any new selfies on her FaceSpace page either.

But Luna did know the one place Carol would be making a beeline for after school, and she wanted to beat her there. She made her way out to the student parking lot, hoping to catch Carol before she drove away. Sure enough, Carol was there, but before she could reach her car, Luna had intercepted her, and there was nowhere for the blonde senior to go.

"Carol, what's going on, dude?" Luna asked, her voice more concerned than angry. "You've been ghostin' me all day, is something wrong?"

Carol glanced over to her car, briefly pondering making a break for it... but then she sighed and looked at Luna, her voice and body both trembling slightly. She was having trouble forming words, and Luna started to wonder if maybe she'd done something wrong by forcing Carol to talk to her when she clearly didn't want to.

"Hey, whatever it is, it's okay."

"No, it's not okay," replied Carol, looking away from Luna and stroking one of her arms slowly, in a fidgety kind of way. "Luna, I was going to tell you this as soon as I could-"

"Tell me what?" Luna said, placing a comforting hand on Carol's shoulder. "Is something going on? Is something wrong? Like... are you sick or something?"

"I wish I was," Carol said, bowing her head sadly. "Honestly, I probably deserve it."

Luna was baffled by what Carol was saying. Her expression was sad, and there was also some guilt, which Luna could pick up on in Carol's voice as well.

_I wonder if she... wants to break up? _thought Luna immediately. The two had only been dating for a few months, and though their time together had been wonderful, Luna couldn't help but think that she wasn't good enough for the pretty, popular older girl. Maybe Carol finally realized that too, and Luna really couldn't blame her. _Oh man... that would really suck though... I was getting used to us being together. It couldn't be that, right?_

"Luna, you remember me telling you about my old friend from middle school transferring to Royal Woods High?"

"Huh? Oh, you mean Mitchell? Yeah, I remember. You guys used to hang out with your other friends, didn't you?"

Carol nodded.

"Yeah, I hadn't seen him in like five years... it was nice getting to see him again. I told him about what I've been up to, and he wanted to hang out, and-"

"And you have a crush on him or something? I mean, I don't blame you, he _is _pretty hot," said Luna with a smirk. "Not really my type or anything, but I can see what you might like about him. Did you guys date in seventh grade?"

"Just for a few weeks... Luna, I... the thing is... Luna... Mitchell and I... did more than just hang out."

"...you mean like five years ago?"

"...I... I mean like last night," said Carol, her voice almost on the verge of tears. She held both of her arms around her chest, and could barely even look at Luna as she continued to speak. "I... I slept with him."

Just like that, Luna's entire world came crashing down. It would have been one thing if Carol wanted to break up. She could handle that. But Carol cheating on her? With some guy she hadn't even seen in five years? After the two of them had spent so much time together?

"You WHAT?" Luna shrieked, her voice almost breaking. "What the fuck, Carol?!"

"I know...!" Carol sobbed, tears now streaking down both sides of her face. "Luna, I know, I regretted doing it almost immediately and-"

"You think that matters that you regretted it?"

"No, I know! I'm so sorry, Luna, I just... he just... I'm so sorry!"

Luna couldn't bear to hear another word out of Carol's mouth. She could feel tears forming in her own eyes, even as Carol continued to cry in front of her. She couldn't be around Carol, she couldn't even look at her. She turned away, and when Carol reached out to touch her shoulder, she jerked herself forward as if Carol was carrying the plague.

"Luna, I know there's nothing I can say that will make you forgive me-"

"You got that right," spat Luna, giving Carol one last furious look before kicking the side of her car as hard as she could. Then, she walked away, leaving Carol alone in the parking lot with tears streaking down her face and $1800 worth of damage to her car.

O-O-O

Lori Loud could hear her younger sister storming up the stairs. She had been sitting in her room getting ready for her daily video chat with Bobby, but when she heard Luna marching down the hallway toward her own room, she poked her head out to see why her sister was making so much noise on something that wasn't a musical instrument.

"Luna?" said Lori, her voice lined with sisterly concern. "Is everything okay?"

"I don't want to talk about it," Luna replied coldly. As she reached to open her door, Lori quickly closed the gap between them and stopped her, placing a hand on Luna's.

"What happened?"

"I said I..."

Lori could see the tears that had been running down her sister's face, leaving trails of makeup so familiar to Lori herself. She turned Luna around to face her, placing a hand on her shoulder and trying her best to get her younger sibling to open up.

"Please talk to me."

Luna sniffled, reaching up and wiping another tear from her eye. She knew full well that Lori wouldn't leave her alone until she told her everything, and allowed Lori to guide her to her room. As soon as the two sisters were inside, Lori closed the door and pulled up a chair next to the bed to talk to Luna.

"So... what's wrong?"

"...Carol cheated on me."

"She WHAT?" Lori shrieked.

"Yeah, that was my reaction too," Luna replied, sniffling and wiping away another tear. "She avoided me all day at school today and when I finally caught up with her, she fessed up. Some guy named Mitchell that she knew from middle school."

"Mitchell Patterson?"

"Uh, I guess so?"

Lori remembered crushing on Mitchell in seventh grade herself, and having been quite jealous of Carol for being the one that he asked out and dated. However, she dispelled those memories from her mind, knowing that helping her sister Luna was the most important thing right now.

"I can't believe she'd do this," said Lori, furiously storming toward the bedroom door. "I should go punch her right now!"

"Lori, no!" Luna said, reaching out to grab her sister by the arm. "Don't... she's your best friend."

"Not anymore, not after she cheated on my little sister!"

"I don't want you to hurt her! I... I don't want anyone to hurt her. I... I still love her."

"Oh... oh, Luna," said Lori, sitting down on the bed next to Luna and placing an arm around her. "I know you still have feelings for Carol, but she hurt you... she hurt you badly. You can't trust her anymore, and if you can't trust someone, you certainly can't love them."

Luna bowed her head. On some level, her sister was right. Carol had shattered her trust, she'd slept with someone even knowing how much it would hurt her. Luna knew she shouldn't be so quick to forgive, if she should even forgive at all. And she _was _furious with Carol, she was tempted to go to Carol's house and slash her tires or smash her headlights with a baseball bat, just like in that country song that used to play on the radio all the time. But... she still loved Carol. Still loved her smile, still loved her bubbly and kind personality. Carol did a terrible thing, but did it make her a terrible person?

"I dunno, sis," said Luna, looking back up at Lori. "Maybe this was just a one time thing, maybe she'll never do it again."

"Once a cheater, always a cheater," said Lori. "If she did it once, and you forgive her, she'll do it again because she knows you might let it go again."

"But I want us to be together, really bad... I know I shouldn't, I know I should just give it up with her and move on, but the thought of doin' that makes me feel sick. The thought of being without her hurts... I know I should be stronger, I know I _am _stronger, but... oh man..."

Lori continued to comfort Luna, holding her close and not saying anything so that her sister could express herself further. Luna sniffled, and another tear rolled down her cheek, and Lori continued to hold her, knowing that anything more she said would just make it harder and harder for Luna to move on.

"Lori, what would you do if Bobby cheated on you?"

Lori's eyes widened a bit, as if she was viscerally offended that Luna would ask such a question. However, instead of reacting angrily, Lori just sighed and gave her sister's question some honest thought, wanting to respond as best she could with the calmness and maturity her sister needed.

"Well... I'd like to think I'd cut his dick off," said Lori, briefly clenching one of her fists. "But... I honestly don't know. Maybe I'd take him back. I guess neither one of those would be the stronger thing to do... the best thing in that situation would be to just let him go. I'd like to think I'd be mature enough not to hurt him or to take him back, but I can't imagine what I'd do until something like that actually happened. I hope it never happens to me, and I'm so sorry it happened to you."

Lori pulled Luna in for a tight hug. The two sisters embraced, as Luna sobbed quietly into Lori's chest, and Lori shed an empathic tear of her own for her younger sister. The two hugged for quite some time before finally parting, with Lori handing Luna a tissue to wipe her eyes and blow her nose.

"Thanks sis," said Luna, looking back toward the door. "I don't know what I'm gonna do, but even after everything she did and everything you said, I still love Carol."

"I know you love her, but it's over," Lori replied. "It's never easy to walk away, but let her go. It'll be alright."

Luna just stood and left the room. Was Lori right? Was it really over? Or could she save her relationship with Carol?

Did either of them even want to save it?

O-O-O

Later that night, Luna knocked on Carol's door. The door opened, and Carol answered it. She didn't make any effort to go back inside or close the door, and was honestly prepared for anything Luna might say or do, the look on her face indicating that she knew she deserved it.

"Carol... I just want to say that it was fucked up what you did."

"I know," said Carol, "and I would do _anything _to make it up to you. I... I want you back, but I know I don't deserve you and I won't ask."

Carol was already starting to cry as she spoke. Luna could tell that she was sincere, that she honestly did regret hurting her and that she was crying over more than just potentially losing her as a girlfriend... but that didn't make what she did okay, and it certainly didn't make Luna any more likely to take her back. It still hurt, and she was still upset, and she still had a lot to say.

"I didn't come here to get back with you," said Luna, "but I didn't come here to break up with you either. …how's your car?"

Carol blinked, looking at the car parked in the driveway, which still had a significant dent in the side of it.

"I... I told my dad that some drunk kid ran into it in the parking lot. He believes me, but I think he might sue the school to have them pull the surveillance tapes, so I don't know how long that lie is gonna last..."

"Wouldn't be the first lie that didn't last," grumbled Luna, glaring fiercely at Carol. Carol's shoulders slumped.

_I deserved that, _Carol thought.

"Seriously though, what were you thinking?! I never even once cheated on you, not even in a million years would I ever sleep with someone else!"

Carol tried to explain herself, but she could barely get through one sentence without crying again. Luna just crossed her arms in front of her, willing to wait until Carol could compose herself enough to speak. Finally, she managed to stammer out an explanation.

"We had a lot of fun hanging out and talking... he wanted me to come over to his house..."

"And why did you?" asked Luna. "Nevermind the fact that he clearly wanted to sleep with you, but he could've been dangerous! What if he'd forced himself on you?"

"Well, he told me his parents were home, and they were... until they stepped out to go on a date and left the two of us alone. One thing led to another-"

"God, that is the most cliched fucking line in the history of the world! 'One thing led to another'? You're quoting the fucking Fixx on me now?!"

Carol had been rendered speechless by Luna's fury, and resigned herself to an epic tongue lashing, or even a fist to the face, but instead, Luna managed to calm herself down, and Carol could hear her starting to cry as well.

"The worst thing about all of this is that... despite the fact that you cheated on me... I still love you," said Luna. "And I don't know why, because I don't want to, but I do! Do you have any idea how much that hurts? To still love someone after they hurt you that badly? How pissed off I am, not just at you, but at myself? What's wrong with me? That's not something I should have to ask myself when I'm in love with someone, but now it is because of what _you _did!"

"I'm so sorry..." sobbed Carol, reaching over to hug Luna only for Luna to turn away. "I'm so sorry I hurt you. I know I can't undo what I did, I just don't want you to hurt anymore! Please tell me what I can do! Even if you still want to break up, I'll do anything you want just to make you feel better!"

"Just shut up, just shut the hell up right now," Luna said, more sad than angry. "God, stop making me love you so damn much... the more I love you the more it hurts."

"I'm sorry..." Carol whispered, wishing she could do anything to take back last night. "You don't deserve someone like me."

"I used to think that too, only back then I thought it was the other way around... that I wasn't good enough for you," said Luna, looking back into Carol's eyes.

"You are the best person and you deserve so much better than me," replied Carol. "...but I still love you and if you took me back I swear on my life that I would never hurt you again."

Luna wanted desperately to believe Carol. She wanted it so bad it burned, from her chest all the way up and down her body. She clutched her chest tightly, looking away from Carol again as more tears came down her face. Then, she looked back up at her.

"I don't know, dude," said Luna softly, a hint of bitterness in her voice and expression. "I... I don't know."

Then, Luna turned away, walking back down the Pingreys' driveway. Carol took a few steps toward her, reaching out.

"Are you going to be okay...?" she asked, at least wanting to know that even if Luna didn't take her back, she wouldn't be hurting anymore.

"Yeah," replied Luna, though her expression stayed the same. "I just... I need some time to think right now. I think I need a lot of time."

Carol watched Luna until she completely disappeared around the corner. Then, she fell to her knees, put her head in her hands, and started to weep.


	4. Style

(Author's Note: _Seven Shades Of Purple _is being written as part of **Caroluna Week**, inspired by the _Loud House _fan/writer **JamesSunderlandsPillow**! This story, and all the other stories featured in this work, are part of an anthology, which means that they each take place in their own separate continuity and aren't connected to any of the other stories contained within, or any other _Loud House _story I've previously written. Thanks for reading!)

O-O-O

**Day 4 – On A Date **("Style")

_And when we go crashing down, we come back every time  
'Cause we never go out of style, we never go out of style _

-"Style" (2014) by Taylor Swift

O-O-O

Luna Loud had been to concerts before, but this was a brand new experience for her. Crowds of people, most of them teenage girls, filed in all around her, and there were more people here than there were even at the Mick Swagger concerts she'd been to. She would've felt completely lost if not for the presence of the pretty blonde standing next to her, clinging tightly to her arm with an excited look on her face.

"I still dunno about this, Carol," said Luna, trying her best to put on a happy face but still a bit skeptical as she and her date Carol Pingrey made their way through the packed crowds to the concert hall entrance. "You know this kind of music isn't really my thing..."

Luna didn't know why she'd agreed to go to a Baylor Quick concert with Carol, considering the fact that she wasn't a fan of either the singer or the genre. Actually, she did know: it was a date, she loved Carol, and the two had been to plenty of concerts for singers that Luna liked before. Plus, Carol had some of the best seats in the house, right in the front row. Even if Luna didn't like Baylor Quick, she'd try her best to swallow her objections and enjoy herself... but once the music started, she wasn't sure she could contain herself.

"Oh Luna, give Baylor Quick a chance," Carol said sweetly, pulling Luna in a bit closer as the two walked through the doors leading to the bottom level of the arena. "Her music is great, and she can play guitar really well too!"

"Yeah, but aren't most of her songs just trashing her old ex-boyfriends?" asked Luna, raising her eyebrow. "Not really the kind of songs I'm into."

"Well, she does have a lot of passion, you have to admit that," Carol replied. "Besides, her ex-boyfriends are all jerks, they deserve a good vocal thrashing and Baylor makes a fierce statement of empowerment in the modern age! Just like you do when you sing about how much you love to rock out even when rock and roll has mostly faded out of the musical mainstream."

Carol's analysis of Baylor Quick's music was quite informed, and something that Luna really couldn't argue with, though she did take some fault with Carol's assessment that singing about an ex-boyfriend was the same thing as singing about rock and roll. Before she could come up with something to say, the two were already surrounded by some of Baylor's most hardcore fans as they walked down the steps to the very front row. On stage, the opening act was performing. Luna recognized one of the band members, it was the winner of the most recent season of _America's Next Hitmaker_.

_Man, I dodged a bullet there, _thought Luna, watching the young singer perform. _If I had won that dumb show, I'd have been opening for Baylor Quick! None of these people know rock and roll at all, it would've totally sucked._

Luna still felt uncomfortable as she and Carol finally reached their seats, though the two actually wouldn't be using them as nobody in the arena was sitting down. They were standing almost front and center, with ecstatic Baylor Quick fans on either side of them, screaming the singer's name even as her opening act continued to perform.

"WE LOVE YOU BAYLOR!" shouted one of them, before whistling quite loudly.

"I STAN BAYLOR FOREVER!" shouted another, jumping up and down.

"Look at these guys, they're chanting for Baylor Quick even when somebody else is on sta-" Luna's rant was cut off by Carol's hand clamping down tightly over her mouth, and though it felt soft and silky and smelled of lavender hand lotion, Luna still hated to be silenced, and voiced a muffled objection. "Mmmmmph!"

"Keep it down, if these Baylor stans hear you talking like that, we're liable to get our faces plastered on FaceSpace as total Baylor haters! Then I can kiss my likes goodbye..."

Luna gasped softly after Carol finally lowered her hand, then leaned in close and whispered into her ear.

"Are you kidding me? I can't even say how I really feel about being here?"

"I'd really prefer you didn't," Carol whispered back. "Come on Luna, please try to have fun... you were so happy when we were at dinner earlier!"

_That's because I wasn't surrounded by crazy 12 year old girls... _thought Luna, glaring daggers at the delirious fans on all sides of her. _I just hope that when I make it big in the music industry, my fans aren't crazy like this._

Luna was still fuming, but begrudgingly agreed to enjoy herself, trying to remember two things: one, she was on a date with Carol Pingrey, a girl she truly loved, and second, as bad as it sounded, music was still music and maybe she could find something to enjoy in all of this.

"Okay, fine," groaned Luna. "I'll be on my best behavior. Anyway, it's not where we're at that matters, it's who I'm with, and you're still amazing even if your taste in music isn't perfect."

Carol giggled, before leaning in to kiss Luna gently on the cheek.

"You sounded just like one of Baylor's songs just now," said Carol, before launching into the chorus of said song. "_It's not where I'm at, it's who I'm with, and baby I feel amazing when I'm with you..._"

Carol was soon joined by every other nearby Baylor fan, all of whom knew the lyrics and sang the next lines of the song as Luna grimaced in agony.

"_And wherever I go, I want everyone to know that I'd go on a one way trip anywhere with you._"

_It's gonna be a long night... _thought Luna, just as the opening act ended. On the massive video screens encircling the back of the stage, a video began to play, showing various images of Baylor Quick performing on stage and entertaining her fans, as her voice narrated the footage.

_With me, it's not just about the music. It's about empowering everybody out there to be themselves, even when the world tries to pull you down. It's about choosing your own style and not just going with the flow. And every one of my fans knows that when I sing, it comes directly from my soul._

Luna listened as the speech continued, grimacing as Baylor's narration covered pretty much every modern popstar cliché she could think of. And yet, some of the message seemed to resound with her, even as her brain told her it was just a bunch of fake platitudes spouted by an insanely rich and famous popstar.

_Ugh, _Luna thought, barely able to watch the video montage that showed Baylor interacting with her fans, taking selfies and giving out hugs. _Mick Swagger never spent five minutes before his concerts showing some dumb video of him hanging out with his fans. ...actually, come to think about it, Mick Swagger probably spent the last five minutes before his concerts snorting coke and getting blown by some groupie. But still, that's more authentic than whatever this is!_

Baylor's video went on and on, getting the crowd hyped for her to finally take the stage. As it continued, Luna kept watching, trying not to get sucked in but actually starting to find herself somewhat inspired by the messages.

_And I want everyone to remember that I'm just an ordinary person, like all of you. Fame hasn't changed me, and every night I perform, you all remind me of that. _

"See, Luna? She started out as an ordinary girl, just like you!" said Carol, holding Luna with one arm while snapping dozens of photographs with her phone.

"Yeah, but she's nothing like me, Carol," Luna protested. "We don't sing the same kinda music, we don't live the same kinda life, we-"

"OH MY GOD BAYLOR!" Carol suddenly screamed, squealing loudly and taking several more pictures as the popstar finally made her appearance. There was one thing that Luna liked about Baylor Quick: she was absolutely, stunningly beautiful, and Luna couldn't help but feel a chill go through her body as the singer walked onto the stage in a sparkling, skintight outfit that revealed very little but allowed her figure to be clearly visible.

_God, with a body like that I can't imagine why her boyfriends always behave like such jerks, _thought Luna. _If I had a girlfriend that pretty I'd never want to do anything to hurt her._

Then Luna looked over at Carol and realized that she indeed had a girlfriend that pretty, or possibly even prettier. She blushed intensely and couldn't help but smile at Carol's happiness and enthusiasm at seeing one of her favorite performers up close.

_At least Carol's enjoying herself, _thought Luna with a smile. _Ugh, guess I HAVE been kind of a jerk badmouthing Baylor Quick like I've been doing... maybe after this is over I should apologize._

A powerful dubstep beat began to shake the entire stage, sending waves of bass through Luna and Carol's chests. Another chill went through Luna as she felt the intensity of the sound passing through her body, and she looked up as Baylor started performing.

"_The last boy who messed with me, I confess, it pleased me to post him up on the FaceSpace net to get torn apart like he tore my heart..._"

"BURN HIM TO THE GROUND BAYLOR!" screamed a nearby fan, taking out her phone and snapping a few more pictures of Baylor before going onto the FaceSpace account of her latest ex-boyfriend to make posts trashing him. Luna looked all around and could see several other fans doing the same thing, but next to her, Carol was just swaying back and forth to the beat of the music, occasionally letting out a shriek but mostly just getting lost in Baylor's words and enjoying herself.

"She's... pretty angry, isn't she?" Luna whispered to Carol as the song continued.

"I know, right?" replied Carol. "But you should totally read about what her last boyfriend said about her on BMZ. He's a jerk!"

Luna sighed as the song wrapped up, hoping that the rest of the concert would be a bit better. Unfortunately, the next few songs were mostly the same: angry screeds trashing ex-lovers, with a few vapid love songs sprinkled in. Luna actually found herself liking the love songs more, and she also appreciated that Baylor actually sang her music and didn't use any of the Autotune that Luna had come to loath about modern pop singers. Even if she didn't actually like any of Baylor's songs, she began to subtly appreciate the artistry, and even found herself singing along with one of them, which prompted a loud squeal from Carol.

"I knew you'd like this one!" shouted Carol happily, before singing along with Luna. "_I know true love's gonna come someday, even if I gotta wait for Monday..._"

Luna almost stopped, but something about the sweetness of Carol's voice and the touch of those soft hands on her upper arm made her keep singing along, and even louder, swaying back and forth with Carol to the next lines of the chorus.

"_I don't care if I get hurt again, I'll just get back up and we'll still be friends._"

"She's... a lot less angry in this one," Luna commented, even as Carol kept on singing through the bridge.

"Well, she's not angry all the time," replied Carol. "I mean think about it, if you were worth half a billion dollars and got to do what you loved every day, would you be?"

"There's more to life than money," said Luna. "The best musicians don't do it for the money."

"And Baylor's rich enough that she never has to sing again," replied Carol. "But she keeps doing it anyway."

"Probably because she's tied down to a contract."

"She just bought out her own record company," replied Carol with a smirk. "She's her own boss now. Oooh, that's her next song, listen!"

"_Now I get to do whatever I want, for whoever I want, and that's usually me. I'm my own boss now!_"

"I'M MY OWN BOSS NOW!" screamed the crowd, including Carol. Luna looked up at the confident and beautiful singer on stage and couldn't help but feel inspired and empowered, even if the tone of the music wasn't exactly her favorite.

_Okay... she's got passion, I'll give her that, _thought Luna, smiling and sighing and joining in with the crowd as they continued to sing along with Baylor. "I'M MY OWN BOSS NOW!"

As the concert continued, Baylor worked her way back through her discography. The first half of the concert had mostly been songs from her most recent album, but later on, she performed some of her older songs, and Luna found herself increasingly into them. Toward the end of the show, Baylor performed one of her earliest songs, a song that predated even the release of her very first album. She sat down on a stool up at the front of the stage and began talking to the crowd again, taking a long sip of water to soothe her vocal cords before speaking.

"This song I wrote when I was just fifteen years old," said Baylor, holding her guitar in one hand and her pick in the other. "I love music, I always have, I've always been singing. I'd like to thank each and every one of you for giving me the chance to sing for the whole world. I wouldn't be here without you guys, and when I wrote this song, I used to imagine singing it for a big crowd just like this. Maybe not quite this big, this really blows my mind how many of you are here tonight."

A few dozen times each second, a shriek would go out from the crowd, a young fan expressing their love for Baylor. It all blended into a high-pitched cacophony of affection, with Carol joining the crowd a few seconds in.

"Baylor, you're amazing!" Carol screamed, still clinging tightly to Luna. Luna smiled and nuzzled her face against Carol's, smooching her on the cheek. She still wasn't enjoying herself nearly as much as Carol was, but she wasn't exactly bored out of her mind or ready to gouge out her eyeballs, so that was a small victory.

Luna didn't join the fans screaming their love to Baylor. She stayed silent, looking up with an approving smile as Baylor's story finished. As Baylor finished speaking, she looked down at Luna for a moment, their eyes briefly meeting.

"I love performing too," Luna mouthed to her.

"You're more of a rocker, aren't you?" Baylor mouthed back.

Luna felt a chill again. Though she didn't feel as strong a connection to Baylor as some of her 'stans' did, there was something about the shared love of music between two performers that bonded them, and she continued the conversation, being as honest with Baylor as she could.

"Yeah... not really a big pop fan," confessed Luna, before throwing up a rocker hand gesture and a smile. "But... respect."

Baylor smiled back, mimicking Luna's hand gesture perfectly and even sticking out her tongue.

"Respect," Baylor mouthed back to Luna, before standing up to perform her song.

As Luna stood there, a bit stunned and feeling quite warm all over, Carol looked at her, eyes wide, mouth agape.

"HOLY FREAKIN' CRAP!" Carol suddenly shouted, before squealing and wrapping her arms tightly around Luna. Meanwhile, the nearby fans were going crazy, all of them shouting their approval and taking pictures of Luna.

"Baylor talked to you!"

"You must be so cool!"

"Aw come on, it's not that-" Luna began before once again, Carol shut her up. This time, it wasn't with her hand, but with a fierce and passionate kiss, a kiss that Luna eagerly returned. The nearby fans all squealed at the display, snapping more pictures and voicing their approval, and even Baylor took a moment to smile down at them before continuing her song.

_My first kiss at a concert, and it's a Baylor Quick concert_, thought Luna, who would roll her eyes at the irony if they weren't tightly closed while she drank in the ecstasy of her girlfriend's sweet kiss. _Oh well... a kiss is a kiss and Carol Pingrey is still the most awesome girl in the world... even if her taste in music isn't perfect._

O-O-O

After the concert ended and Luna and Carol had made their way out of the arena together, the two walked to Carol's car, which was parked fairly close in the exclusive parking area for front row attendees. The two stopped before getting in to enjoy one more kiss, and Luna finally got the chance to speak freely about that night without fear of reprisal from some of Baylor Quick's biggest fans and fear of disappointing Carol.

"Okay, I gotta be honest, most of that music wasn't very good," said Luna. "I mean, she spent the whole first half of the concert slamming her dumb ex-boyfriends and singing silly pop stuff, and even the second half wasn't all that great."

"Wow," said Carol, with a slight giggle. "You were a lot nicer about it than I thought you'd be. I thought you'd say the concert sucked."

Luna blushed a bit, remembering her promise to herself and feeling a bit guilty for being so upset about going to the concert.

"About that... I guess I wasn't the best girlfriend tonight," said Luna, bowing her head. "I mean, you've gone to plenty rock concerts with me, the least I could've done was not say anything about going to a Baylor Quick concert. So... I'm sorry."

"What? Are you kidding?" Carol exclaimed, putting her hands on Luna's shoulders in an effort to comfort her girlfriend. "Luna, that's one of the things I love about you is that you always speak your mind. You don't have to lie or hold your tongue around me. If there's something you don't like, it's okay to say it. I mean, I'm sorry I shut you up like that before... you had a point about those fans screaming Baylor's name during the opening act, that was super rude to the performer. Who cares about my likes? Next time, if you don't like a concert, you say whatever you want, and if we get trashed by crazy stans, well... so be it!"

The two girls smiled at each other, and Luna nodded, no longer feeling quite so guilty about her earlier grumbling.

"Well, I did have a little fun," admitted Luna. "And Baylor Quick isn't so bad. I mean, her music's definitely not my thing, but she's a great performer and she loves music, and that's all that really matters."

"I still can't believe she actually talked to you! I mean, I can believe it, because you're amazing, but... I can't believe it!" shouted Carol excitedly. "I was so awestruck that I forgot to take a picture of you guys, but I think there are plenty already up on FaceSpace, so I'll just use one of those as my wallpaper for like the next week... month... year! Aaaaaaaaaaahhhhh!"

"Okay, calm down, Carol," said Luna, sliding into the passenger side of the car while Carol sat down in the driver's seat. "But yeah... it was a good time."

"Luna, can I confess something?" Carol suddenly asked, placing her hands on the steering wheel. "Please don't be mad."

"Huh? Mad? It's like you said before, Carol, I don't want you to lie or hold your tongue around me either. If you have something to say, just say it, okay?"

"Well, here goes... one of the reasons I started liking you so much is because, well... you kinda remind me of Baylor Quick. Not in the way you guys look or the kind of music you perform, but in how much passion you have for performing. When I first saw you performing together with your band, it reminded me so much of her, but even better because you had even more passion than she did... your smile as you were singing, the way you yelled your words, the emotion in your voice... it's why I fell in love with you. And even if you don't become a huge popstar like her, that doesn't change the way I feel."

Luna was somewhat stunned as Carol spoke to her. The comparison Carol made between her and that popstar was something she never expected to hear, but when she thought about it a little more, she could definitely see why Carol might have compared them. Still, it made Luna blush, all over her face. She didn't think of herself as being anywhere near as beautiful as Baylor Quick, and certainly not as talented either. To know that Carol thought the same of them was a little bit confusing, but extremely flattering.

"There's one difference, though," said Carol, leaning over and gently lifting Luna's chin. "You are way hotter than Baylor Quick."

Before Luna could say anything, Carol kissed her, and the two girls were soon fiercely making out in the front seat of Carol's car. As soon as they stopped to catch their breath, Luna expressed her humility.

"Aw, come on Carol, you're definitely hotter than Baylor Quick, but me?"

"It's the freckles," Carol replied, before beginning to sing the words from another Baylor Quick song. "_Those pretty freckles, that's what he sees, that's what makes her so much cuter than m-_"

Luna shut Carol up with another kiss. Unlike Luna, Carol found herself quite happy with being silenced.


	5. Our Lips Are Sealed

(Author's Note: _Seven Shades Of Purple _is being written as part of **Caroluna Week**, inspired by the _Loud House _fan/writer **JamesSunderlandsPillow**! This story, and all the other stories featured in this work, are part of an anthology, which means that they each take place in their own separate continuity and aren't connected to any of the other stories contained within, or any other _Loud House _story I've previously written. Thanks for reading!)

O-O-O

**Day 5 – Kissing **("Our Lips Are Sealed")

_It doesn't matter what they say  
In the jealous games people play  
Our lips are sealed_

-"Our Lips Are Sealed" (1981) by The Go-Go's

O-O-O

Carol Pingrey and Luna Loud never imagined they would end up together, but despite the objections of some of Carol's friends, and despite Luna's initial misgivings about dating a girl most of her own friends called 'the preppiest queen bitch in the school', the two had found each other and had fallen in love, and they'd spent the last two months in the unlikeliest of romances. They spent time with each other almost every day. They enjoyed each other's music, they tried out each other's favorite hobbies, and despite their differences, they were as close as ever.

And at the moment, that was true both emotionally _and _physically.

Carol Pingrey and Luna Loud never imagined they would find themselves duct taped in a locker together, but instead of spending a beautiful spring Saturday swimming in the lake together with their schoolmates, that's exactly where they were.

The two had been crammed into the tight metal space, with tape binding their wrists behind their backs and their arms to their sides, with more tape wrapped tightly around their thighs and ankles to keep them from kicking their way out of their predicament. The culprits were four of Carol's old 'friends', friends that Carol had initially made in her climb up the school's social ladder. She'd gradually drifted away from them after making less toxic friends, friends like Whitney, Becky, and Dana, who didn't spend all their time lording over and belittling others. It was Carol's decision to become best friends with Lori Loud that ended up being the final straw for Carol's former clique. When they insisted that she choose between them and 'that poor bitch with ten siblings who farts all the time', the choice was easy, and Carol kicked those toxic girls to the curb. School became a lot less stressful for Carol since she'd made her new friends, and even less so since she'd gotten together with Luna.

Carol hadn't expected the sudden ambush in the dark locker room, and though she'd tried to talk her former friends down, they outnumbered her. When Luna showed up to save her, Carol, fearing that Luna would be hurt taking on four older girls, told her to back down, and Luna reluctantly obliged. A few minutes later and the two were crammed into that locker, and after several threats and homophobic taunts, their world went dark, leaving them trapped together in silence enforced by a strip of duct tape tightly secured over each of their lips.

The silence wasn't absolute: Luna had started yelling and swearing the moment her mouth had been taped, and the yelling didn't stop after the locker was shut. Luna slammed herself fiercely against the locker door, but it was secured tightly, and she'd earned only a bruised shoulder for her efforts. Carol had been much less boisterous, whimpering only a muffled apology through the tape as Luna breathed through her nostrils and tried to calm down.

_Luna, this is all my fault. Those girls attacked us because of me, and I'm the one who told you not to fight back. Now we're trapped in here... and they could come back to hurt us at any time. I'll never forgive myself if something happens to you! Luna, I'm so sorry!_

Though Carol tried to be the strong one and put on a brave face, it was clear from her heavy breathing and her whimpering that she was extremely terrified, and Luna picked up on it almost immediately. Luna didn't know what to think. A part of her was indeed angry with Carol, angry that Carol had called her off when she could have gotten them both out of this... but Luna had to remind herself that as tough as she was, it was four-on-one, and if she had fought back, she wasn't just putting herself in danger, but Carol as well.

_Carol, it's not your fault... dammit, I wish I could tell you that! This stupid tape... those stupid girls... if I had a chance I'd thrash 'em! ...but I couldn't protect ya. Aw man, this is all my fault..._

The locker was in a room that wasn't air conditioned, and with the temperature warm outside, it was already getting fairly hot inside the tight locker. While the fact that the two of them were dressed in matching purple two-piece swimsuits was helping them to stay cool considering the circumstances, it was making things a lot more awkward for them in certain... other ways. Their eyes had adjusted a bit to the darkness of the locker, and they could already begin to read the embarrassed expression on the other's face.

_Yeah... this is a bit of a tight spot... _thought Luna. She started to flex her wrists and shoulders in an effort to extricate herself from the tape, and every movement made her body rub against Carol's. Their chests and flat stomachs pushed together, and both of them instinctively looked away from each other. _Oh man... sorry, Carol!_

Carol just continued to breathe heavily, her chest and nostrils both flaring. She muffled out a quick reassurance to Luna that it was all right and that Luna couldn't help moving against her, but it was unintelligible and did nothing to ease the awkwardness of the situation. Carol tried to struggle herself, but she was having an even tougher time moving around than Luna was, and the tape on her arms barely budged, even with the thin coating of sweat starting to cover both of their bodies.

The two girls looked at each other again, breathing intensely. They could feel each other's heartbeats; Carol's was beating a bit faster than Luna's. They tried to push themselves away from one another, but the confining locker didn't allow them to separate even an inch. They couldn't avoid the contact, their chests were still touching, and both girls tried to express their feelings about the situation, but those efforts were futile.

_God, this is turning me on... _thought Luna, who immediately felt guilty and tried to look away again. _What the hell am I thinking? We're tied up and trapped in a locker together, we're both in serious danger and I'm getting turned on?! Geez, Luna, you are one messed up chick. I just have to get us out of this, before I turn into a horny mess! I bet Carol's done with me after this, I just know she is, especially if I can't keep from creaming myself in here with her! I should have fought back against those losers, even if she told me no... it's not her fault for not wanting me to get hurt, it's my fault for being such a coward! I just wish I could tell her I'm sorry..._

_Oh no... I think I'm getting aroused...! _thought Carol, hoping that Luna wasn't feeling it with the two of them pressed so tightly together. _I bet she's already pissed off at me, now I'm actually starting to enjoy myself in here? She already blames me for not letting her fight back and for having such psycho friends, if I get turned on by this she'll never forgive me! I just... I have to get out of here! I have to try!_

The two girls intensified their struggles, despite knowing that it would only cause them to rub together even more. Carol began muffling apologies to Luna, while Luna tried to reassure Carol that she was going to get them both out of this. Luna jerked her wrists hard against the tape binding them, hoping the sweat running down her arms would help her to get loose. She grunted and groaned, crying out in exertion, while Carol's cries were more like loud shrieks, more desperate than Luna's primal efforts.

_It's no good...! _thought Luna, letting out a groan of frustration before slamming herself hard into the locker door again. This turned out to be a mistake, as doing so only aggravated her bruised shoulder. She cried out in pain, and whimpered, with no way to rub her shoulder to soothe the pain. Luna's pained whimpering immediately made Carol stop her own efforts, as she tried her best to comfort Luna despite the tape over her lips.

_I'm sorry, I'm so so sorry! _Carol emoted, nuzzling her face tenderly against Luna's as best she could. Luna's eyes widened a bit as she heard Carol's despaired exclamations, and despite the pain in her shoulder, her heart went out to Carol, wanting to soothe her emotional pain far more than she wanted to soothe her own physical distress.

_Aw man, Carol's really bummed out about this... _thought Luna, listening as Carol tried futilely to speak to her. _I know, I know... ugh, if only I could talk to her! I have to get this tape off, I need to tell her I'm okay! I need to tell her I'm not mad... I need to know if she's not mad..._

Luna needed to rub off the tape, but the only thing close by was Carol's shoulder. Leaning into her companion, Luna began to rub her taped mouth against Carol's exposed shoulder, hoping that there was a loose corner that she could loosen up even further. Meanwhile, Carol looked on curiously, wondering exactly what Luna was trying to accomplish.

_Luna? It's not me with the hurt shoulder, it's you! Why are you trying to comfort me? ...oh... oh Luna, no, no, you don't need to comfort me. I'll be okay. I'm... I'm really scared and I feel so terrible about getting you into this, but I'll be okay. Luna, please, it's going to be fine!_

Luna grunted with exertion again, fiercely rubbing her face on Carol's shoulder, trying desperately to get the tape off, looking for a few beads of sweat she could use to try and moisten it up. Finally, Luna felt some of the tape come off her face, a small corner of it, and kept working that corner against Carol's shoulder. Finally able to see what Luna was doing, Carol stopped protesting and just watched, hoping that Luna could free up her lips and that she would soon hear that beautiful raspy voice again, unobstructed.

_Luna, hurry! Even if you just want to tell me how mad you are at me, I want to hear you talk to me again!_

_Come on... _thought Luna, groaning in frustration as the rest of the tape refused to peel itself away. _Come on, just a little more!_

Finally, success. The rest of the strip of tape came off in one fierce peel, and Luna let out a soft gasp as her lips were freed again. Luna jerked her head away from Carol's shoulder, and the tape fell down to the bottom of the locker, allowing Luna to speak freely once more.

"Whew..." said Luna softly, opening and closing her lips a few times and licking the rest of the tape residue off. "Okay Carol, hold still, I'm gonna get the tape off your mouth now."

"Hmm?"

"I'll use my teeth," said Luna, smiling. "Just lean over a bit, I think I see a loose corner."

"Mmm? Mmm-hmm..." Carol leaned in, and Luna gripped at the tape with her teeth, trying to find that loose corner she'd mentioned. _I thought she'd yell at me... maybe she's not mad? I hope she's not scared at least..._

Luna got a grip on the loose corner of tape with the tips of her teeth, and started to pull.

"Uhkay Cahhrll, ahm gnna rihp eht ahf wff ohne puhll," said Luna through her gritted teeth, preparing Carol for the sting. Carol nodded softly and then winced, closing her eyes. Luna didn't even count, she jerked her head to the side, ripping the tape off Carol's lips. Carol let out a soft shriek, then took a few deep breaths, relieved to be able to talk again. Luna spat the strip of tape out onto the floor, and took a few moments to catch her own breath after all that exertion. "Whew... Carol, are you okay?"

"Yeah... I mean... no," said Carol, shaking her head. "Luna, I'm so sorry, this is all my fault! Those girls, they used to be my friends, I thought I could talk to them but they're crazy! I'm sorry I got you into this, I'm sorry I told you not to fight back, I'm sorry-"

Luna leaned up and pressed her lips passionately against Carol's.

_No more apologies, _thought Luna, slowly parting her lips and hoping Carol would reciprocate.

_Luna... you were never mad at me, were you?_

Carol did reciprocate, and soon the two girls were kissing deeply, fiercely, intensely inside the confines of the locker. No longer caring how much they enjoyed rubbing their bikini-clad bodies together, they pushed together as much as they could, kissing with all of their energy, taking their chance to have a moment of bliss after such a terrifying experience. They were still tied up and still locked inside a locker, but in that moment, they felt free. Their tongues soon slid into each other's mouths, and they didn't stop, moaning into the kiss, almost competing to see who could get into it more. They moaned each other's names against their open mouths, they parted for a second and then kissed again, their intense lip smacking and muffled expressions of affection the only sounds that could be heard inside that quiet space. When they finally parted after several more fierce kisses, they both had to catch their breaths, and it took them a few more seconds to finally be able to speak.

"Don't sweat it..." said Luna finally, through quickened breaths. "I should have just fought back anyway... it's easier to ask forgiveness than to ask permission."

"And I would've forgiven you," Carol replied warmly. "I guess I was just worried about you _and _about them... even though I pretty much hate their guts now."

"Yeah... what was the deal between you and those guys anyway?" asked Luna. "Why do they hate you so much? It couldn't have been anything you did, you're totally awesome. Are they just jealous of you, or of your new friends?"

"A little bit of both I guess," said Carol with a sigh. "Before I started hanging out with people like Whitney and Becky and Lori, I hung out with another group of girls... mostly my freshman and sophomore year. We spent all our time hanging out together, going to the mall, having sleepovers... and we also spent a lot of time putting people down. We used our social clout to get ahead, we used our money to buy lots of trendy stuff to show off... looking back I can't believe I fell in with a group of people like that, but I was pretty desperate to fit in and I let the peer pressure get to me. It's no excuse, I know, but..."

Carol sighed again, still feeling guilty that she used to be such a terrible judge of character.

"I wish I hadn't invited you here today," said Carol. "I mean, I love having you as my plus one at the big senior swim party, but it put you in a situation like this, and now-"

"Shut up," replied Luna. "I mean it, don't talk like that. Don't feel bad about anything you did. This isn't your fault that I'm in here, it's those stupid bitches who put us in here! Do you think I'd be able to forgive myself if I heard you got trapped in here like this alone? Nah... even if they drag me out of here and beat me to within an inch of my life, I'm glad I got to keep you company in here. I'm glad to be your girlfriend. And..."

Luna bit her lip. She was squirming, and Carol could feel Luna's quickening heartbeat.

"And this situation is really turning me the hell on," said Luna, blushing so much that Carol could feel the heat of it on her face. "I, uh, hope that's okay."

Carol started to blush as well. She was still scared as hell to be trapped inside this locker, not knowing if the next person that came would be their rescuer or their captors, not knowing if she and Luna might eventually start cooking to death inside the increasingly hot confined space they were both in. But she couldn't deny what else she was feeling, and if enjoying this situation as best she could took her mind off her fears, then that's what she would do.

"Maybe if we work up enough of a sweat," breathed Carol, biting her lip and leaning in, "we can get the rest of the tape off..."

"Sounds like a plan," replied Luna, before leaning in to kiss Carol again. Carol returned the kiss, and soon the two were once again making out, as fiercely and as passionately before. This time, they got even more into it, rubbing their bodies together and jostling for space inside their confinement. Their bound feet pushed together, as did their legs, covered only by the tight purple bikini bottoms the two of them were wearing.

"Luna..." whispered Carol softly, pushing her against the side of the locker before planting another fierce kiss on her lips. "I think you're probably going to be able to get free before I do... I can see your shoulders flexing just a bit more..."

"Yeah, I'm pretty athletic," said Luna, smirking proudly as she jerked her shoulders up and down, both to attempt to work the tape loose from her arms and to give Carol a nice little show. "I've had practice getting out of this before, you wouldn't believe how many times my sisters have tied me up to keep me from rockin' into the night..."

Carol giggled, biting her lip again as she watched Luna flex and twist against her bonds.

"If I didn't know better, I'd say you liked being tied up," whispered Carol, before leaning in and kissing Luna fiercely. Luna moaned against the kiss, pushing back and playfully using her body to shove Carol away. "Oh!"

"You sayin' I'm a sub?" asked Luna, placing her feet on top of Carol's and pushing downward to playfully but gently step on her toes. "I always figured you were the submissive one, I just never thought ta ask ya..."

Carol blushed, moaning a bit as Luna continued to lean forward, pressing her into the side wall of the locker and showing a bit of dominance even in her bound state.

"Well, I _am _older..."

"That don't mean nothin'," said Luna, who then leaned in and placed a hard kiss on Carol's lips, using her teeth to pull back on Carol's bottom lip slightly as she pulled away. Carol moaned tenderly, and Luna couldn't help but blush, even giggling slightly as Carol pushed back against her.

"We could always take turns," said Carol, pushing her feet up against Luna's and pushing back gently against her. "Okay, okay, I admit it... you'll probably be on top most of the time..."

Luna giggled again, playfully nuzzling her face against Carol's and giving her a few more quick kisses, much more gentle than the last one.

"Whatever you wanna do," said Luna, her voice warm and gentle as she continued to rub her face against Carol's. "Right now I just wanna keep kissing you..."

Despite their continued peril, the two girls were drawing strength from one another, and they were much more calm than they had been just a few minutes before. Their heartbeats had slowed, their fear and anger had mostly subsided, and even though they still knew they had to try and get free, their minds weren't overwhelmed by the idea. They were perfectly willing to take it slow, conserve their energy, and continue to enjoy their situation however they could, making a pleasant dream out of what would otherwise been a terrifying nightmare. It was continuing to get warmer in the locker, but not oppressively so, and the girls could both feel that their sweating and rubbing together had loosened the tape a bit more. If they kept at it, if they kept struggling against their bonds, they would eventually be free.

But for now, they weren't quite ready for that. All they wanted was each other, and they leaned in to enjoy another passionate kiss.

Their lips collided and tenderly parted, and both of them began to moan. Their bodies started to rub together again, with Carol's chest pushing against Luna's slightly smaller one, a fact that Carol couldn't help but make a remark about after parting from the kiss briefly.

"So if I'm turned on right now, you must be _really _turned on, considering I have a lot more to turn you on with," said Carol, her eyes briefly glancing down at Luna's chest.

"Okay, I should have kept the tape on your mouth," remarked Luna.

"Too late now," Carol replied, smirking. "Now there's no way you can shut me up."

"Wanna bet?"

Luna leaned forward and kissed Carol again, who playfully tried to make more comments about Luna's figure even with a mouthful of Luna's tongue. Luna finally started to laugh, snorting a bit though her nose, and Carol giggled, and the two laughed as they kissed, and their laughter turned back into moans as their bodies pushed together again.

This time, the kiss didn't stop. Carol and Luna were at the peak of their pleasure, and neither was willing or able to back down. They closed their eyes, lost in the ecstasy of each other's bodies. Even if they couldn't embrace, they didn't need to, their lips were doing all the embracing they needed to do. Finally, both of them opened their eyes, and looked deeply into each other's, and without needing to speak, said 'I love you'.

_I'm still a bit guilty about you being here with me, but I'm glad you're enjoying it... _thought Carol, feeling herself getting ready to climax as her body ground against Luna's and their tongues continued to embrace. _When we get out of this, all I want to do is hold you in my arms._

_Aw man, this is awesome... I might be tied up and trapped in a locker, but I'm in here making out with the hottest girl in school... and the nicest, _thought Luna, barely able to contain her own overwhelming arousal._ Carol, when we get out of this I promise those girls who did this are getting the beating of their lives._

The two girls moaned louder and louder, and as they did so, their bodies pushed harder and harder against the locker door. Once again, Luna felt the pain in her shoulder, but this time, she didn't care. The two were making a truly hellacious racket, but despite the loud banging as their bodies slammed into the sides of their confinement, all they heard was each other, and both of them were getting ready to explode, their moans pitching higher and higher with every second that went by. The darkness surrounded them, a welcome companion, though Carol and Luna felt not a hint of shame at what both of them were about to do.

The door to the locker opened, and light flooded in. The two girls, lips still locked in a passionate kiss, looked out expecting to see their four tormentors. Instead, they saw someone else.

"Oh... my... God!" shrieked Lori, not knowing whether to be terrified that her best friend and her sister were tied up so tightly inside a locker, relieved that they both seemed to be okay, or embarrassed that she'd caught the two of them just seconds away from climaxing together as they made out. "Are... you guys... okay?"

Carol and Luna looked at Lori, then back at each other. Slowly, they parted from their kiss.

"Yeah... I think so," said Luna, once she'd finally gotten over her embarrassment enough to speak. "We're okay now."

"Uh... uh... uhhh... ummm... how'd you... find us, Lori?" Carol finally managed to stammer out, her face a deep shade of red.

"Whitney overheard the girls who did this laughing and bragging about it, and rushed to come get me... I got here as fast as I could, Whitney's watching to make sure they don't come back. ...which they'd better not because when they do I'm gonna knock the crap out of all of them!"

"Not before I get a piece of them first!" shouted Luna.

"Could you maybe untie us first?" asked Carol, wiggling her bound hands at Lori.

"Right," said Lori, walking over to free the two girls. "I... take it you managed to keep each other calm?"

"You... uh... could say that," Luna replied, now blushing as deeply as Carol as Lori began to work on freeing them from their bonds. "But we're okay. It's like you said, we kept each other calm."

"Mmmhmm," said Carol, nodding vigorously. "I would have been freaking out without Luna here!"

"Totally," replied Luna, smirking at Carol. "She would've been going nuts!"

"Hey!" Carol said, playfully shoving herself against Luna. "You don't have to rub it in!"

The two girls were freed, and Carol immediately hugged Luna, holding her tightly as Lori tossed the discarded duct tape into a nearby trash can.

"Thanks for keeping me company in there," whispered Carol. "I promise I'll try not to feel too guilty about what happened."

"Hey, it's okay," replied Luna, nuzzling her face against Carol's and resisting the urge to start making out with her again. "No worries."

The two girls then both hugged Lori, before Whitney rushed back in.

"The coast is clear," said Whitney. "I think those four are leaving, I saw them heading to their car."

"Wait!" shouted Lori. "They just kidnapped my little sister and my best friend, we should call the cops on them!"

"It's okay," replied Carol. "I... I don't want to get the police involved. Unless... Luna, do you? It's up to you."

"I think it'd be more satisfying to just kick their asses," said Luna, clenching her fist. "But nah... I agree with Carol, it ain't worth the trouble."

"Are you _sure_?" replied Lori, placing her hands on both Carol and Luna's shoulders. "You two could have been seriously hurt, and what if they try something like that again?"

"No worries," replied Luna. "Only time I like getting' the police involved is when they're singin' about girls named Roxanne."

Lori sighed, but then smiled and hugged Luna, accepting her and Carol's decision and trusting that the two of them could look out for themselves.

"If those girls ever pull a stunt like that again, I'll make them wish they were in jail," said Lori.

"Not if I get to them first," said Luna with a smirk, her arm wrapped around Carol's shoulder. Lori smiled back at her, then left the locker room with Whitney, leaving her sister and best friend alone once again. "Aw man... guess I'm glad to be out of that situation."

"You _guess_?" replied Carol, rubbing one of her wrists which had turned red from the tightness of the tape. "I mean, it was kinda fun, but let's not get carried away, I don't ever want to be tied up again. ...unless it's by a certain someone..."

Carol and Luna both blushed at each other.

"Yeah, same here," said Luna. "You know... we never quite got to finish what we started..."

"Well... I hate to say it, but Lori kinda killed the mood. If only she'd saved us just a few seconds later..."

Luna looked Carol up and down. In the darkness, she was pretty. In the light, she was stunning. Carol looked back at Luna, and Luna could see Carol twisting slightly back and forth, clenching her legs a bit and biting her lip.

"Maybe there's still a bit of a spark left," said Luna, walking toward Carol and leaning in. "Wanna find out?"

Carol nodded, and her lips met Luna's one more time. Their lips parted, just long enough to say...

"I love you."

Then, another kiss, and the next sounds to come out of Carol and Luna's mouths were soft, blissful moans.


	6. I See The Light

(Author's Note: _Seven Shades Of Purple _is being written as part of **Caroluna Week**, inspired by the _Loud House _fan/writer **JamesSunderlandsPillow**! This story, and all the other stories featured in this work, are part of an anthology, which means that they each take place in their own separate continuity and aren't connected to any of the other stories contained within, or any other _Loud House _story I've previously written. Thanks for reading!)

O-O-O

**Day 6 – AU/Crossover/Cosplay **("I See The Light")

_Now she's here, shining in the starlight  
Now she's here, suddenly I know  
If she's here, it's crystal clear  
I'm where I'm meant to go _

-"I See The Light" (2010) by Mandy Moore and Zachary Levi (from _Tangled_)

O-O-O

It was a beautiful morning for Carol Pingrey as she laid on her bed in the middle of her room at the top of a tall tower. Surrounded by her books, her clothes, her possessions, and her seventy feet of long, silken blonde hair, she had just about everything she needed. She even had her phone, which she could use to take endless selfies of herself to send to her loving Mother Gothel. Carol sometimes wondered why she could only talk to her mother on her phone, but she'd been warned that the rest of the world was populated by cruel people who only wanted to use her for her hair, which had the properties to heal and make youthful anyone who brushed it.

"Another perfect day in my perfect room inside my perfect tower," said Carol, taking a picture of herself with her one companion besides her mother, a yappy corgi named Pascal. "Click!"

It was then that Carol's mother entered the room, happy to see her as always. She walked over to Carol, holding up her own phone and admiring the picture her daughter had just taken.

"Good morning my dear, it's lovely to see you this morning!"

"Did you get the photo I sent you, mom?"

"I did, I did!"

"Did you like it yet?"

"Oh, my goodness, wherever are my manners?" Gothel pressed the 'like' button underneath the picture Carol had sent, and Carol squealed happily and clapped, grateful that her mother liked yet another of her pictures. Of course, Gothel liked all of her pictures, and even though she was the only one who ever saw them, a like from her meant more to Carol than anything in the world. "Now darling, it's time for me to brush your hair again..."

Carol giggled, sitting down in her favorite chair and allowing her mother to brush her hair.

"Why don't you sing for me too, dear?" Gothel asked, brushing Carol's hair a bit faster. Carol smiled and nodded, singing for her mother the same song she always did to make her hair work its magic.

_Hair so long and blonde_

_On a perfect girl_

_It's the cutest hair_

_In the entire world_

_Time for you to shine_

_Shine so very bright_

_Heal this person now_

_In your bedazzling light..._

"Ahhhh..." Gothel moaned, as the youth and vigor was restored to her by Carol's magic hair. "So wonderful, thank you my dear..."

"Now that I've used my hair on you, guess what day it is?" asked Carol, holding up her phone. "It's my 18th birthday! And I want a car, and a new wardrobe, and-"

"Dear, we've already talked about this. What good is a car if you can't leave the tower?"

"Well, that's kinda the thing... I was maybe hoping you would let me leave?"

"Absolutely not, end of discussion!" shouted Gothel, getting up to leave the room.

"That is so not fair!" Carol protested, standing up and walking after her mother. "I'm 18 now, I should be able to leave the tower! And I want a nice car, too!"

"Your hair would get caught in the wheels!"

"It's called braiding, duh!" shouted Carol, as her mother slammed the door. "I can't believe her, Pascal! Locking me up in this tower, telling me it's not safe out there... I can protect myself just fine!"

And as Carol continued to huff and fume, she could hear the sound of someone just outside her window.

"Hmm?"

Carol started over to the window, grabbing a metal frying pan that was lying nearby. She stood, frying pan at the ready, waiting for someone to come through. The first thing she saw come through the window was a hand, holding a purple guitar. As Carol looked on quizzically, the person the guitar belonged to climbed into the room. She was wearing a strange, studded purple outfit and had short brown hair, and Carol readied herself to knock this strange intruder out.

"Be ready Pascal, it's one of those bad people mom talked about!"

Carol brought the frying pan down on the person, only for it to be blocked by the guitar.

"Whoa, hold on a minute dude, what's going on?" asked the mysterious intruder, lifting herself to her feet. "I'm just lookin' for a place to crash, and... whoa, what the heck? I've heard of hair metal but that's the most hair I've ever seen!"

As the stranger looked on, bewildered by Carol's hair, Carol shrieked and leapt back, holding her frying pan defensively as Pascal yipped and barked.

"Don't come any closer, I know how to use this!"

"Uh, that's a frying pan, I'm pretty sure you're supposed to use it for cooking, not bashing people in the head," said Luna in a deadpan snark. She then stepped forward, prompting Carol to take two steps back. "Hey, there's no reason to be scared of me!"

"Who are you?!" questioned Carol. "Are you a ruffian? A thug? A psychopath?"

Luna laughed, so hard it caused her to make a little snorting sound.

"Well, I have been called that last one before," said Luna. "Comes with the territory when you rock out as hard as I do! But nah, my name's Luna Rider. I'm a rock star!"

"Did you say a rock star?" shouted Carol, before leaping up onto her bed and holding onto her bedpost, quivering in fright. "Mom said rock stars are the absolute worst! They trash hotel rooms, sleep with loose women, and play the devil's music!"

Luna laughed even harder, nearly doubling over she was laughing so much, while Carol just looked on in fright and curiosity.

"Aw man, I wish I was livin' that kinda life! Wait a minute, she says all those things in a bad way? Geez, sounds like a real buzzkill."

"Don't talk about my mom like that! She takes care of me! She brushes my hair and she likes all of my selfies! And you need to get out of here right now!"

Luna could see that Carol was clearly frightened of her, and didn't want to do anything to antagonize the poor girl, so she just pulled up a chair and sat down while continuing to try and talk to her, hoping she could get Carol to calm down and let her hang around for a while.

"Look, I just need somewhere to hang out until the heat dies down," said Luna. "I'm a wanted girl and the cops have been chasin' me all over the kingdom."

"For what? Robbery? Murder?!"

"Nah, noise complaints," said Luna, holding up a wanted poster of herself. It looked just like her, but with a comically huge nose. "Apparently in this kingdom you can get sentenced to death for playing rock music too loud! I guess Sharif don't like it, or something. Anyway, I was getting chased by the fuzz and saw your tower just sticking up out of nowhere, so I figured I'd climb up here! I thought it was empty, I didn't know there'd be a beautiful girl living here. Especially not one with a ton of hair. You some kind of hippie or something? Because I know some songs hippies totally dig."

Luna held up her guitar and started playing a slow, psychedelic tune, singing melodically to herself and to Carol. Carol immediately felt more relaxed, but didn't know exactly why. Still holding her frying pan defensively, she slowly stepped down off the bed and began walking toward Luna, almost circling her.

"What... is this song?"

"I dunno, it's about like, the government, or something," said Luna. "I mean, it's not really relevant to today, but I love the rebellious spirit of it. You know, the kind of spirit that says to rise up and stand for something, or, I dunno, run away from home."

"Run away?" asked Carol, looking around her room. "I could never run away from mom. She takes care of me."

"Do you ever leave this tower?" asked Luna, who stopped playing and looked up at Carol, wondering why this pretty girl she'd just met seemed to be so naïve about so many things. "I mean, seems like you spend a lot of time cooped up in here."

"Well, what's wrong with that when the world's so full of danger?"

"Do you even use the internet on that phone of yours?" asked Luna, pointing to the smartphone on Carol's dresser.

"No, mom says it's dangerous. She only lets me use my phone to take selfies, and I can only send them to her."

Luna's shoulders slumped, and her face drooped, and she had an absolutely deadpan look on her face, as if someone had just told her the most unfunny joke in the world.

"What? ...don't judge me, I take really pretty selfies!" said Carol, handing Luna her phone. "Here, look!"

Luna began to thumb through Carol's selfies, and even though Carol had spent her entire life cooped up in her room, the pictures showed her doing all kinds of things, bringing the whole of the world into that small space. Carol was painting, reading, trying on different clothes, playing with her corgi, playing the violin... even though she'd never seen anything but that tiny room and the books her mother allowed her to read, she was still a fun, passionate girl who loved life and made the most of what she had. Luna could also see that Carol absolutely loved taking selfies, and took hundreds of them every single day.

"So... Carol Pingrey, huh?" remarked Luna, seeing Carol's name on her phone. "And what's your mom's name?"

"Uh, why?"

"Just askin'," said Luna.

"It's Gothel," Carol replied.

"Uh huh," said Luna, typing a few things on Carol's phone and then tossing it back to her. "Here ya go."

"Hmm? What's this... wi-fi?"

"I unlocked the internet on your phone," said Luna with a smirk. "Check it out."

Numerous programs and options had been unlocked on Carol's phone, and as Carol began to explore, Luna just watched her, strumming softly on her guitar. She watched the expressions on Carol's face as Carol went to website after website, the world outside her tower suddenly revealed to her... and in Carol's amazement, Luna found beauty, even more beauty than she'd seen in all those selfies Carol had taken of herself.

"_And at last, I see the light..._" Carol sang softly to herself, looking at people's FaceSpace pages and all the other beautiful selfies they'd taken of themselves.

"_And it's like a fog has lifted..._" replied Luna, strumming some more on her guitar. Carol put her phone down and picked up her violin, and started to play along with Luna.

"_And it's warm and real and bright..._" sang Carol.

"_And the world has somehow shifted..._" Luna sang back to her.

Carol put her violin down and walked over to Luna, a look of pure wonder and joy expressed in her eyes.

"I can't believe it... all this time locked in the tower, I never imagined the world was so... so..."

"Awesome?"

"Yeah," said Carol softly, reaching down and placing her hands on Luna's. "I still don't know you very well, but I trust you... and I want you to take me out of this tower! We have to go see all those wonderful places! We have to meet all those amazing people!"

"You know I'm still a wanted fugitive, right?" asked Luna, smiling but looking a bit worried about leaving the tower so quickly.

"I know, but apparently, I'm a long lost princess," replied Carol, holding up her phone and showing Luna the story of her abduction by Gothel eighteen years ago. "So I can totally get your charges dropped, or at least I can bribe any cops we meet."

"Works for me!" said Luna, standing up with Carol and walking back toward the window. "Uh, quick question though, how are we supposed to get down?"

Carol smirked and began gathering up her hair. As she got ready to tie it into a rope that she and Luna could use to climb down, the door to the room flew open, and Gothel stormed in.

"I heard voices in here Carol, are you all-" Gothel started, before gasping at the sight of Luna. "Intruder! Carol, get back darling, I'll stop her!"

"That's enough, mom!" said Carol, stepping forward. "You can't trick me anymore! I've seen the internet, and I know you kidnapped me! Luna showed me everything!"

"It's all lies dear, that's just what a dirty rock star would say!"

"She's not a dirty rock star, she's just a rock star and she's really clean! Um, sort of," said Carol, leaning into Luna and wrinkling her nose a bit.

"Aw come on, bra, I didn't have time to slap deodorant on today!" Luna protested, before pointing at Gothel. "The jig's up, lady, you can't keep Carol here anymore! We're leaving!"

"Like hell you are!" shouted Gothel, before pulling a knife and charging at Luna. Luna, unprepared for the sudden attack, was knocked to the ground, the guitar flying from her hands as Gothel pushed the knife toward her.

"Jeez, twisted sister, I'm not ready to go under the knife!" shouted Luna, struggling furiously with Gothel as the knife edged closer to her. "Carol, help!"

Carol grabbed her frying pan and ran toward Gothel to knock her away from Luna, only for her to look up at Carol with a frightened, affectionate expression.

"Carol, you can't! Don't you remember who I am? I'm your mother!"

"Not my real mother! You kidnapped me!"

"But I've taken such good care of you, haven't I? I've fed you, I've given you so many wonderful things here..."

"You used me!" shouted Carol, tears in her eyes as she raised the frying pan up even higher. "And I'm not going to take it!"

"No, you ain't gonna take it!" shouted Luna.

"I'm not gonna take it anymore!" Carol continued, bringing the frying pan down at Gothel's head.

"I'll buy you a car!" she suddenly shouted, making Carol stop in mid-swing.

"Will you let me drive it?" asked Carol, looking somewhat excited.

"Of course not," Gothel replied, glaring at her.

Wrong answer. Carol brought the frying pan down on Gothel's head, knocking her out and ending her hold over the beautiful young princess. Then, Carol knelt down to see if Luna was okay. Unfortunately, she'd been too late... the knife had penetrated Luna's flesh, and her sequined outfit was stained with blood.

"Oh no!" Carol gasped. "You're hurt! I'm sorry I couldn't save you! ...wait, I'll use my magic hair!"

Luna lifted up her top to look at the wound. It was still bleeding, but it was actually just a small cut and would be just fine.

"Nah dude, I'm cool," said Luna with a smirk. "Bet it turns into a sweet scar too."

Carol squealed with delight and fell upon Luna, hugging her tightly.

"Wait a minute, you have magical hair?" asked Luna.

"Yep! It glows, too!"

"Only when you're healing people?" Luna asked, looking down at her wound. "I mean, a scar would be cool, but I love a good light show too..."

"It glows whenever I sing," Carol replied, still holding Luna tightly in her arms.

"Oh... well in that case..."

Luna picked up her fallen guitar and started to play.

"Ever been to a concert before?" asked Luna.

"No, but what I saw on my phone looks kind of scary..."

"Oh, that's just Ozzfest, it's supposed to be scary. But I promise this won't be."

Luna continued to play, and started to sing, and Carol began to sing along. Her beautiful golden hair began to glow, illuminating the entire room. The two of them sang together, and when they were finished, Carol leaned in and smiled at Luna.

"Did I ever tell you I've got a thing for brunettes?" asked Carol.

"Sweet," Luna replied.

Then, Luna leaned up, and the rocker and the princess shared their first of many kisses on the floor of the room at the top of the tower.


	7. I'm A Little Bit Country

(Author's Note: _Seven Shades Of Purple _is being written as part of **Caroluna Week**, inspired by the _Loud House _fan/writer **JamesSunderlandsPillow**! This story, and all the other stories featured in this work, are part of an anthology, which means that they each take place in their own separate continuity and aren't connected to any of the other stories contained within, or any other _Loud House _story I've previously written. Thanks for reading!)

O-O-O

**Day 7 – Family **("A Little Bit Country, A Little Bit Rock 'n Roll")

_I like that peaceful easy feeling  
Of a laid back country song  
And when I sing my rock n roll  
I can sing it all night long _

-"A Little Bit Country, A Little Bit Rock 'n Roll" (1976) by Marty Cooper

O-O-O

It was evening, and Carol Pingrey was nervous. She shouldn't have had any reason to be. She'd been spending the afternoon with her girlfriend Luna Loud, and like so many other afternoons, the two had been having a great time together. Sometimes, the two went out to eat, sometimes they went out to the mall, and other times they played music, but today the two had been spending some quality time at Carol's house, talking and occasionally kissing.

And still, Carol was nervous.

"Aw man, I can't believe I finally get to meet your dad," said Luna. "We've been dating for what, six weeks? And I still haven't gotten to meet either of your folks? I know you told me how busy they always were, but still, you'd think I'd have gotten to meet them at some point."

"Well, you know how it is, mom's at a conference, and dad's always working late. I'm just glad he's able to get home early today so you two can meet."

But if Carol was glad, her expression and nervous twitching certainly didn't show it. Luna, knowing her girlfriend quite well, could pick up on it right away, and reached over to place a hand on Carol's in an attempt to get her to relax.

"Hey, you worried I won't like your dad?"

"Um... sorta, maybe?" Carol said softly, looking over at Luna in an almost apologetic way. "The thing is, once you find out who he is and what he's done, I'm not sure you'll want to date me anymore."

"What?!" Luna exclaimed, quite shocked that Carol would make such a statement, especially about her own father. "Are you kidding, dude? Why would you even say something like that?"

"I know, it's silly, but... oh no, have I already ruined everything?"

Luna knew her reaction to her girlfriend's admission had just made her even more nervous, and she quickly moved to calm her down, taking both of Carol's hands in hers and holding them tightly.

"Hey... Carol, you know I love you, right? And no matter who your dad is, it's not gonna change anything between us. You're the sweetest, kindest, smartest, and prettiest girl I've ever met, and I'm lucky to have someone as incredible as you. I wouldn't give that up for anything, especially something you can't change."

"Luna... I'm the lucky one," replied Carol, smiling warmly and kissing her girlfriend's cheek.

"So... who is your dad, anyway?" Luna asked. "I mean, why do you think I'd hate him so much?"

Carol sighed.

_This is it, Carol... time to show Luna what you mean. I know she might not dump me over this, but she'll definitely flip out, and not in a good way._

Carol then took out her smartphone.

"So anyway... my dad's name is Alan," said Carol. "Alan Pingrey."

"...and?" Luna replied, scratching her head. Carol's jaw dropped slightly.

"Wait a minute, you've _never _heard of Alan Pingrey?"

"Uh, should I have? Is he a famous lawyer or something? That's what I always figured, your dad was some bigshot lawyer. Does he have those commercials that always play during the afternoon soap operas, where some guy gets into a wreck and then the lawyer comes on and says how he can win lots of money?"

Carol was slightly taken aback by the fact that Luna was completely oblivious about the identity of her father, especially since she was such a music lover.

"Alan Pingrey was a _huge _country music star in the 1990s," said Carol. "One of the biggest of the decade!"

"Ohhhhh, that's why. He was a country star. Carol, you know I don't listen to country! I mean, I can play the steel guitar pretty good, but that's only for covering classic surf rock tunes, I don't know anything about old timey country music stars."

"Well, this is him back in his heyday," said Carol, showing off a picture of one of her father's old album covers. He was shown in an old country bar, sitting on a jukebox, sporting a big hat, a blonde mustache, and much longer hair than he had in the present. "This album went multi-platinum."

"Whoa, I gotta say, that is a pretty wicked mullet," said Luna with a smirk. "Your dad used to look pretty good back in the day, even if all he played was country music. I don't see anything too harmful about him, even if country isn't my fave. Is that why you were so worried?"

"Well..." said Carol, biting her lip and looking increasingly nervous. "The thing is, he first got famous playing a certain song... it's like the most successful song he's ever done... and, um... you might not like what it's about."

Luna raised her eyebrow again, then sighed and placed her hand on Carol's shoulder.

"Chill out, Carol, I already told you, there's nothing your dad could sing that would make me not like you."

"His most famous song was called _Don't Play Mick Swagger_."

Now Luna understood why Carol was so nervous about her finding out who her dad was. Carol then zoomed out on the picture of her dad.

"That's... also the name of the album," said Carol, showing the album's title. Luna raised her eyebrow and had a bit of an offended look on her face.

"Wow, harsh," groaned Luna, her shoulders slumping a bit. "What did your dad have against Mick Swagger?"

"Here," said Carol. "I'll play the song for you."

As she and Luna sat and listened, the unmistakable sound of a country twang began to play through her phone.

_Don't play Mick Swagger_

_On that old jukebox_

_My soul ain't prepared_

_For classic rock_

_Can't stand that music_

_It's way too soon_

_Don't play Mick Swagger_

_Let's hear some country tunes_

Luna continued to listen to the song, which depicted a heartbroken man who'd just broken up with his significant other, and needed some slow country music to soothe his soul. The song finished, and Carol was left worried about how her girlfriend would react.

"So that's the song," said Carol with a sigh. "I'm guessing you must be pretty upset with my dad right now..."

"Well... I can't say I agree with the message, but I can tell he just wants to hear country music because he's bummed out. He doesn't have anything _personal _against Mick Swagger, so... nah, I'm not upset at the song," said Luna, smiling reassuringly at Carol. "Plus, he's a great singer."

"Yeah," said Carol, nodding her head in agreement. "He still is."

Carol could see that Luna wasn't upset, and it took a great weight off her chest. She relaxed her shoulders and let out a relieved sigh. Luna couldn't help but laugh a bit at seeing just how worried Carol was, and was glad that Carol's secret wasn't nearly as bad as it could've been.

"So that's it?" asked Luna. "If that's all it is, I think me and your dad are gonna get along just fine. Why didn't you tell me your dad was a music star? I mean, I know you were probably worried and embarrassed about his Mick Swagger song and that I'm not a fan of country music, but I think it's pretty cool! Does he still record albums? Do you guys have a studio in the house? I mean, what's it like being the daughter of a music star?"

Luna's questions were coming quite quickly, and Carol wasn't ready to tell a long story, so in the short amount of time before her dad would be due to arrive home, she decided to give Luna the short and sweet version.

"Dad stopped playing music right around the same time he had me. They moved from Nashville up to Royal Woods to try and get away from the business so that they could raise me like a normal kid. For the first ten or so years of my life, it was pretty normal. Then dad decided to launch a chain of country music themed restaurants, so he's busy running that business most of the time. Meanwhile, mom went back to school and now she's writing for magazines, so she spends a lot of time touring the country on assignment, which is why she's away so much. We still have a lot of money saved up from dad's old career, and he still makes a lot in royalties, but he tries to save most of it so things stay relatively normal for us. There's actually a lot of people in Royal Woods who don't know who my dad is."

"That's pretty crazy, but it's actually cool that he wanted you to live a more normal life," said Luna. "I mean, I've thought about what it might be like for me becomin' a rock star, and I know it would probably mean the end of my privacy, I'd see my family a lot less because I'd be touring so much, I'd have to deal with crazy fans... you take the bad with the good, you know?"

"Yeah," said Carol, nodding her head. "Dad chose to get out of the life, but he still deals with stuff from it pretty often, he's got a lot of fans on the internet and occasionally people ask him to do music for their projects, so he hasn't stopped playing music completely."

Luna and Carol continued to talk about Carol's father, and at one point, something popped into Luna's mind, something she did know about the country music scene from what little she'd heard of it.

"Uh, is your dad... okay with us being together?" asked Luna. "Don't take this the wrong way, but I know the country music scene is a bit... uh... how do I put this..."

"'Traditional'?" Carol said, finishing Luna's sentence with a relatively neutral term. "It's okay, and yes, dad fully accepts my sexuality. Back when he first started in the business, he was opposed to same-sex relationships, but over time, he changed his views, and when I came out to him a few months ago, he was really sweet about it. It's okay, he won't give us any trouble about that."

"That's good," Luna replied. "Actually, now that I know he likes music, I think I'm even more excited to meet him."

"Well, I hope things go well," said Carol. Despite Luna's assurances and despite the fact that she knew her father was a kind and accepting person, she still worried about the clash in their musical styles causing friction between them and embarrassment for her. She felt her familiar anxiety returning, and just as she got ready to express that to Luna, she could hear someone coming in downstairs.

"That sounds like he's home!" Luna said, standing up and walking toward the door.

"Carol, I'm home!" came Mr. Pingrey's voice from downstairs.

"Well, should we go see him?" asked Luna, holding her hand out to help Carol up. Carol, who was still quite nervous, looked at Luna's hand and had an expression of trepidation on her face. "Carol...?"

"Luna, um, could you go out to meet him? And then I'll catch up? I just remembered, I needed to check something on my phone..."

Luna thought about pressing the issue, but she could see how nervous Carol was, fidgeting on the bed as a blush began to grow across her face. Luna raised an eyebrow, but decided not to push Carol into getting up just yet, and instead walked confidently toward the door.

"It's okay, I'll go say hi, but you'd better come out sooner or later, okay?"

Carol nodded, and Luna blew her a kiss before stepping outside. Almost immediately, she took out her phone and flopped down onto the bed, hastily typing a text to Lori.

_Luna is meeting my dad right now. I'm so nervous! I can't even watch. What if she thinks he's lame? - Carol_

Carol held her phone up in her shaking hands, and thirty seconds later, she got a return text.

_Carol, you're being ridiculous. Your dad is awesome. They're both musicians, Luna will love him. What are you doing, sitting in your room? - Lori_

_Yes. - Carol_

_You go out there and join them right now! - Lori_

Carol held her phone tightly to her chest, looking at the door. She couldn't hear what Luna and her dad were talking about... she didn't even know if they were talking at all. She could just imagine them sitting in the living room, looking at the walls, not saying anything, trying not to bring up music. She could just imagine her dad thinking that Luna was just some weird rocker, or Luna thinking that her dad was a lame has-been. She texted Lori again.

_I told Luna about dad's hit song! She didn't look mad, but what if she was just hiding it to make me feel better? What if she's out there yelling at him for trashing Mick Swagger? - Carol_

Twenty seconds later, another text. Carol opened it up.

_You know Luna's not like that! Have some faith in your girlfriend. Go out there! - Lori_

Lori was right. Carol knew Lori was right, and now she felt bad for thinking so poorly of her girlfriend. Luna wouldn't lie to her, especially not about something so important. If Luna said she wasn't mad, then she wasn't mad. Carol breathed another relieved sigh and started to get out of bed... but she had another thought about her dad and Luna fighting and she couldn't. She held up her phone and started to send another text. Her phone vibrated.

_If you send me one more text, I will literally crawl in through your window, shove you out of your room, and lock it behind you. - Lori_

Carol dropped her phone immediately. She took a deep breath, stood up, and walked toward the door. Her hand was shaking slightly as she reached for the doorknob, but she gathered the courage to turn it, and stepped outside into the hallway.

Downstairs, she could hear the faint sounds of music, but couldn't tell exactly what it was. She stepped down the stairs and the music grew louder. She almost thought she could hear a rock song and two people singing together.

_No, _thought Carol, descending further into the basement. _It couldn't be._

Carol could hear the sound of a Mick Swagger song coming from the den. She opened the door, and inside, Luna and her father were both holding electric guitars and singing loudly.

_Young punks marching in the streets_

_Hear 'em stomp their rebel feet_

_Take those signs and burn 'em down_

_Flip a car and YEAH YEAH YEAH YEAH YEAH!_

Luna was bobbing her head wildly back and forth while Mr. Pingrey played the backing beat and sang the harmony. Carol just stood in the doorway, looking on with a stunned expression on her face. Her dad noticed her, and stopped playing briefly to give her a wave.

"Carol, you never told me your girlfriend could rock _this _hard," said Mr. Pingrey. Luna turned toward Carol and stopped the song, then put her guitar down and walked over to her.

"Your dad was just showin' off his guitar skills," said Luna. "Man, I didn't know he could rock an electric too!"

"Oh, I play all kinds of guitars," Mr. Pingrey said, proudly showing off his collection. There were steel guitars, acoustics, and several electrics, a few of which were vintage from decades before. "Sometimes when I'm all tuckered out from work, I'll come down here and just strum on one of 'em. Carol, you've seen me playing, right? Sometimes you even take out your violin and play along."

"I love playing music with you, daddy," said Carol warmly, leaning in and giving her father a hug. "So... this is Luna, isn't she amazing?"

Luna couldn't help but blush as Carol praised her in front of her father. Just like Carol, Luna was a little bit nervous, especially knowing she was in the presence of such an accomplished musician, and hearing his compliments were quite humbling for her.

"She's got a lot of energy," said Mr. Pingrey. "Luna, I can see you eyein' some of my electric guitars, do any of them stand out?"

"Yeah, this is incredible... you've got a '65 Gibson, a '71 Strat... oh man, I think that's the guitar Melvin and the Merchants played on _The Ed Sullivan Show_ back in the 60s!"

Luna continued to talk to Mr. Pingrey as she admired his guitars, while Carol's nervousness slowly faded at seeing how well her girlfriend and her dad were getting along.

"I gotta be honest, when I found out you made a whole album called _Don't Play Mick Swagger_, I was kinda upset. I mean, he's my favorite rocker of all time, he's the one who inspired me to start playin' music in the first place... but then I listened to the song and realized that it was kinda silly for me to be upset about it. Carol was worried about that too, but she's got nothin' to worry about, I think you're pretty cool."

"Yeah, I played the song for her and told her all about your career," said Carol. "Luna, I'm sorry I thought you'd be so mad. I should've known you wouldn't take it personally, you're the coolest person I know."

"Heh, when I wrote that song I was worried that Mick Swagger might take it personally too," said Mr. Pingrey. "I was just starting out in the music business, and he was a legend. Then I decided to go with my gut and release the song, and figured if he got upset, it might make the album sell better."

"Did he ever get upset?" asked Luna.

"Well, actually..."

Mr. Pingrey walked over to his display of electric guitars and picked one out, then handed it to Luna.

"Turn it over," he told her. She did, and let out a gasp. Mick Swagger's autograph was on the back of the guitar, along with a short note telling Mr. Pingrey that he loved the song and hoped that he was feeling good enough now to start listening to his music again.

"Oh my God, he autographed your guitar? Wait, no... this is... he gave you one of _his_?"

"That's right," said Mr. Pingrey with a laugh.

"Daddy, you've never even told me that story before," Carol said, looking at the guitar in awe.

"Well, I know you're not much of a Mick Swagger fan," said Mr. Pingrey. "You're more into pop music, right?"

"I'm getting into rock a little!" Carol said, blushing. Luna laughed, and gently placed her arm around Carol's shoulder.

"It's cool, our tastes in music don't overlap too much, but we still make pretty sweet harmony anyway," said Luna. "And Carol's singing is amazing, now I can see where she got it from."

Carol gently nuzzled Luna, though she didn't want to get too affectionate with her girlfriend in front of her dad, even though she knew he was accepting of their relationship. Instead, she parted from Luna and walked back over to her dad, as Luna placed Mick Swagger's guitar back in its display case.

"So... you like Luna, daddy?" asked Carol, looking over at Luna and then back up at her father.

"Of course I do," Mr. Pingrey replied, kissing his daughter on the forehead. "And I also know that even if I didn't, she's the kind of girl who'd find a way to hang out with you anyway, and there wouldn't be too much I could do about it."

"Got that right," said Luna with a smirk, before quickly changing her expression to one with a bit more humility. "Uh, I mean, uh... I really like your daughter and I want to keep spending time with her, uh, sir."

Carol giggled at Luna's attempt to be all sweet and respectful, walking back over to her and giving her a warm hug.

"Well, now that you two are getting along, maybe you can spend more time together too? Talking about music, maybe?"

"Yeah, I mean, I wouldn't mind getting some tips about the music biz from an old pro," said Luna. "I just hope I can see you more often, I know the restaurant business is keeping you pretty busy."

"Yeah, and we're expanding into more states this summer, so that's gonna keep me away a lot... but I'm really gonna try to spend more time with you, Carol, and your mom is too, especially as you get closer to graduating. Feel free to bring Luna over any time you want, I'd love to talk about music with her. Maybe even play some."

"Hey... why don't we play some music right now?" asked Luna, picking up her guitar. "Carol, how about you, wanna play with us?"

Carol smiled and nodded, leaving the room and returning with her violin. Mr. Pingrey walked over to his guitar case and took the autographed Mick Swagger guitar back out, offering it to Luna.

"Now, this guitar stays here, but you're welcome to play it any time you come over. Just promise me you won't smash it like rock stars tend to do."

Luna reached out in awe, taking the guitar in her hands and holding it like a delicate porcelain doll.

"Oh man... yeah, I promise to take care of it..." said Luna, her hands shaking a bit as she shifted into playing position. "Can't promise I won't jam pretty hard on it though."

"Well, if it can survive a few years of Mick Swagger playin' it, I think it'll survive a few sessions of Luna Loud. Carol, you ready?"

Carol nodded, placing her guitar under her chin and smiling at Luna. Then, the three began to play a few songs together, starting with rock and then moving on to country. Luna and Mr. Pingrey were the only ones singing at first, but after the first couple of songs, Carol joined in, and by the end, her dad had stopped to allow his daughter and her girlfriend to harmonize together while he played an accompanying tune on his acoustic guitar. The three played together for hours, and by the time it was over, the three of them were laughing like old friends, and were also quite hungry, having played a couple of hours past their normal suppertime.

As Mr. Pingrey went back upstairs to order a pizza, Carol and Luna sat in the den together, still holding their instruments and remembering the wonderful night they'd had. They'd shared a musical experience with Carol's dad, and now the two of them were closer than ever.

"Man, I never imagined I could have so much fun playing country music," said Luna, setting Mick Swagger's guitar gently back in its case. "I guess any kind of music is great when you play it with the people you care about, huh?"

"It's funny..." said Carol, blushing a bit and looking down slightly. "Even though my dad was a huge country music star, and even though he taught me to sing and play, I was never all that big of a music fan... I listened to pop on the radio, I've got a few singers I really like, but music never really spoke to me until the day I met you."

Luna smiled, and thought about the day she met Carol. She and her band were playing in the garage, and all of a sudden, the most beautiful girl in the whole school was watching them. Luna hadn't felt a connection at first, but as Carol continued to watch her play and as the two kept seeing each other, their love grew and grew.

"Was it the music that made you notice me?" asked Luna.

"It was," Carol replied. "You were so loud and intense... but also so full of passion. I kept thinking to myself, 'if that girl can love me the way she loves to sing, I'd never have to worry about being lonely again'. It sounds kind of silly, doesn't it?"

"A little bit," Luna admitted, before placing her hand on Carol's cheek. "But I'm glad you liked my song."

"And what about you? Are you a country music fan now?"

Luna laughed, then smiled and gave Carol a kind of sheepish look.

"I'll always be a rocker," said Luna. "But I can dig whatever as long as it's from the heart."

Carol wrapped her arms around Luna and held her close, looking sweetly into her eyes.

"I've never been much of a country fan myself, or even much of a rocker... but you're right. It's the love that matters."

Carol leaned in.

"And my favorite music is anything you sing," she said softly, before pressing her lips fiercely against Luna's. Luna closed her eyes and held Carol close and imagined Carol singing to her as the two embraced, and as their lips parted, they sang softly to each other.

"_Oh, sweet child of mine..._" Carol sang, her voice quivering slightly.

"_Oh, sweet love of mine..._" Luna sang back, before pressing her lips against Carol's once more.


End file.
